Cirolana cranchii Leach, 1818

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Status:

Native

ID Difficulty

3

Identification

Fast-moving and predatory, Cirolana cranchii looks superficially like a large Eurydice, though it typically a tan colour with brownish mottling. One of the most obvious structural differences is that the peduncle of the uopods is extended, forming a point along the inner side of the endopods. Unlike Eurydice, the peduncle of the antenna has five articles. The pleotelson is also rather more triangular in shape. Adults of the species are between 9 and 19 mm.

Warren Maguire
Warren Maguire

Distribution and Habitat

This is a mainly sublittoral species, commonly being found on the bait in crab and lobster pots, though it occasionally turns up intertidally, especially after storms, on south-westerly shores.

References

Bruce, N. & Ellis, J. 1983. Cirolana cranchii Leach, 1818 (Crustacea: Isopoda: Cirolanidae) redescribed, with notes on its distribution. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) 44(2), 75-84.

Naylor, E. & A. Brandt. 2015. Intertidal Marine Isopods. Synopses of the British Fauna (New Series), No. 3. Field Studies Council, for The Linnean Society of London.

Links

World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS): https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=118839 

Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS) distribution map: https://mapper.obis.org/?taxonid=118839 

BRC code

609

idBmigTaxa