''Nototropis falcatus'' is a species of

amphipod Amphipoda is an order of malacostracan crustaceans with no carapace and generally with laterally compressed bodies. Amphipods range in size from and are mostly detritivores or scavengers. There are more than 9,900 amphipod species so far descr ...

crustacean. It is whitish in colour, with brown patches, and grows to a total length of around . It lives on soft sediment such as fine sand at depths of , from northern Norway to the west coast of Ireland, including the North Sea, and as far south as the southern

Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay (), known in Spain as the Gulf of Biscay ( es, Golfo de Vizcaya, eu, Bizkaiko Golkoa), and in France and some border regions as the Gulf of Gascony (french: Golfe de Gascogne, oc, Golf de Gasconha, br, Pleg-mor Gwaskogn), ...

Description

''Nototropis falcatus'' has a laterally flattened body and grows to a length of about . It is whitish with patches of brown. The head has a small acute rostrum and wavy-edged lateral lobes. The compound eyes are large, especially so in the male. The first antenna of the female is about one third of the length of the body, and the second antenna is slightly longer than the first; the antennae of the male are longer than those of the female. The pereon or thoracic segments are short while the pleon or abdominal segments are long. The first three pleon segments are either smooth or have a small notch or tooth on the rear margin. The third

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 ...

or thoracic leg is particularly stout and has a curved propodus (penultimate joint) and powerful

dactylus The dactylus is the tip region of the tentacular club of cephalopods and of the leg of some crustaceans (see arthropod leg). In cephalopods, the dactylus is narrow and often characterized by the asymmetrical placement of suckers (i.e., the ve ...

(claw); the fourth pereiopod is smaller; in males, these two legs have long, plumose setae (bristles). The basal segments of the first three

pleopod 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 ...

s or abdominal legs are much enlarged. The abdomen ends in a short telson, cleft for three quarters of its length, which is flanked by

uropod Uropods are posterior appendages found on a wide variety of crustaceans. They typically have functions in locomotion. Definition Uropods are often defined as the appendages of the last body segment of a crustacean. An alternative definition sugge ...

s to form a tail fan.

Ecology

This amphipod can swim using its abdominal legs and orienting itself on its side and can also burrow in the soft substrate. It probably feeds by grazing on plant material and consuming

detritus In biology, detritus () is dead particulate organic material, as distinguished from dissolved organic material. Detritus typically includes the bodies or fragments of bodies of dead organisms, and fecal material. Detritus typically hosts commun ...

References

External links

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World Register of Marine Species
{{Taxonbar , from1=Q4454233 , from2=Q46317740 Gammaridea Crustaceans described in 1871 Crustaceans of the Atlantic Ocean