Stygotantulus
Encyclopedia
Stygotantulus stocki is a species
of crustacean
, living as an ectoparasite on harpacticoid
copepod
s of the families Tisbidae and Canuellidae. It is the smallest arthropod
in the world, at a length of less than 0.1 millimetre (0.00393700787401575 in). The specific epithet stocki commemorates Jan Hendrik Stock, a Dutch
carcinologist.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of crustacean
Crustacean
Crustaceans form a very large group of arthropods, usually treated as a subphylum, which includes such familiar animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles. The 50,000 described species range in size from Stygotantulus stocki at , to the Japanese spider crab with a leg span...
, living as an ectoparasite on harpacticoid
Harpacticoida
Harpacticoida is an order of copepods, in the Subphylum Crustacea. This order comprises 463 genera and about 3,000 species. Members of it are benthic copepods found throughout the world in the marine environment and in fresh water...
copepod
Copepod
Copepods are a group of small crustaceans found in the sea and nearly every freshwater habitat. Some species are planktonic , some are benthic , and some continental species may live in limno-terrestrial habitats and other wet terrestrial places, such as swamps, under leaf fall in wet forests,...
s of the families Tisbidae and Canuellidae. It is the smallest arthropod
Arthropod
An arthropod is an invertebrate animal having an exoskeleton , a segmented body, and jointed appendages. Arthropods are members of the phylum Arthropoda , and include the insects, arachnids, crustaceans, and others...
in the world, at a length of less than 0.1 millimetre (0.00393700787401575 in). The specific epithet stocki commemorates Jan Hendrik Stock, a Dutch
Dutch people
The Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
carcinologist.