Upogebia deltaura

Upogebia deltaura
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Family: Upogebiidae
Genus: Upogebia
Species: U. deltaura
Binomial name
Upogebia deltaura
(Leach, 1815) [1]
Synonyms [2]

Gebia deltaura Leach, 1815

Upogebia deltaura is a species of mud lobster from the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea.

Description

Upogebia deltaura is up to 100 millimetres (3.9 in) long, and is a dirty yellow colour, tinged with green, white or red.[3] It is often confused with other species which it closely resembles,[2] such as Upogebia stellata, which has additional ocular spines and a narrower abdomen.[3] The mouthparts are densely setose, which helps to filter particles out of the water.[4]

Distribution

Upogebia deltaura is found in the eastern Atlantic from Sognefjord, Norway to Spain, and throughout the Mediterranean Sea as well as in the Black Sea.[5] It may also extend as far as Togo, West Africa,[5] but possible confusion with other taxa makes this difficult to assess.[6]

Ecology

Upogebia deltaura lives in burrows at up to 190 metres (620 ft) depth,[2] and will make use of burrows dug by other animals.[3] U. deltaura is the most abundant large crustacean and the deepest burrowing (up to 68 centimetres or 27 inches) large animal in Scottish maerl beds, and will reconstruct its burrow after disturbance by storms or trawling.[6]

References

  1. "Upogebia deltaura (Leach, 1815)". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved June 19, 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 Cédric d'Udekem d'Acoz (2003). "Upogebia deltaura (Leach, 1815)". Crustikon - Crustacean photographic website. Tromsø MuseumUniversity of Tromsø. Archived from the original on June 25, 2007. Retrieved August 31, 2007.
  3. 1 2 3 M. J. de Kluijver & S. S. Ingalsuo. "Upogebia deltaura (Leach)". Macrobenthos of the North Sea: Crustacea. Universiteit van Amsterdam. Retrieved August 31, 2007.
  4. Eunice Eunice H. Pinn, Lois A. Nickell, Andrew Rogerson & R. James A. Atkinson (1999). "Comparison of the mouthpart setal fringes of seven species of mud-shrimp (Crustacea: Decapoda: Thalassinidea)". Journal of Natural History 33 (10): 1461–1485. doi:10.1080/002229399299851.
  5. 1 2 Marit E. Christiansen (2000). "On the occurrence of Thalassinidea (Decapoda) in Norwegian waters". Journal of Crustacean Biology 20 (special issue 2): 230–237. doi:10.1163/1937240X-90000024. JSTOR 1549500.
  6. 1 2 J. M. Hall-Spencer & R. J. A. Atkinson (1999). "Upogebia deltaura (Crustacea: Thalassinidea) in Clyde Sea maerl beds, Scotland". Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 79 (5): 871–880. doi:10.1017/S0025315498001039.
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