The Aegidae are a
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
of
isopod
Isopoda is an order of crustaceans that includes woodlice and their relatives. Isopods live in the sea, in fresh water, or on land. All have rigid, segmented exoskeletons, two pairs of antennae, seven pairs of jointed limbs on the thorax, an ...
crustacean
Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean group ...
s. The adults are temporary
parasite
Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson has ...
s of fish, feeding on their hosts' blood before dropping off to digest the meal. They differ from members of the family
Cirolanidae
The Cirolanidae are a family of isopod crustaceans, including these genera:
*'' Aatolana'' Bruce, 1993
*''Annina'' Budde-Lund, 1908
*'' Antrolana'' Bowman, 1964
*'' Aphantolana'' Moore & Brusca, 2003
*'' Arubolana'' Botosaneanu & Stock, 1979
*' ...
in having only three pairs of hook-like
pereiopod
The decapod (crustaceans such as a crab, lobster, shrimp or prawn) is made up of 20 body segments grouped into two main body parts: the cephalothorax and the pleon (abdomen). Each segment may possess one pair of appendages, although in various g ...
s, whereas in Cirolanidae all seven pairs of pereiopods are hooked. The family was first described by
Adam White in 1850.
The family contains the following genera:
*''
Aega''
Leach, 1815
*''
Aegapheles''
Bruce, 2009
*''
Aegiochus
''Aegiochus'' is a genus of isopods in the family Aegidae, first described in 1885 by Carl Bovallius. The type species is '' Aega ventrosa''.
Species
Species accepted by WoRMS are:
*'' Aegiochus antarctica''
*'' Aegiochus arctica''
*'' Aegi ...
''
Bovallius, 1885
*''
Alitropus''
H. Milne-Edwards, 1840
*''
Epulaega''
Bruce, 2009
*''
Rocinela
''Rocinela'' is a genus of isopods in the family Aegidae, and was first described in 1818 by William Elford Leach.Bruce, Niel L.; Schotte, M. (2015)''Rocinela'' Leach, 1818 In: Boyko, C.B; Bruce, N.L.; Merrin, K. L.; Ota, Y.; Poore, G.C.B.; Ta ...
''
Leach, 1818
*''
Syscenus''
Harger, 1880
*''
Xenuraega''
Tattersall, 1909
References
Cymothoida
Crustacean families
Crustaceans described in 1850
Taxa named by Adam White (zoologist)
{{isopod-stub