Cladocera

From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cladocera
Daphnia pulex
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Phylum:
Subphylum:
Class:
Subclass:
Order:
Cladocera

Latreille, 1829
Suborders

Cladocera is an order of small crustaceans commonly called water fleas. Around 620 species have been recognised so far, with many more undescribed.[1]

They are everywhere in inland aquatic habitats, but rare in the oceans.[2] Most are 0.2–6.0 mm (0.01–0.24 in) long, with a down-turned head, and a carapace covering the thorax and abdomen.[3] There is a single median compound eye.[2] They swim with jerking flea-like movements.

Most species show cyclical parthenogenesis, where asexual reproduction is occasionally supplemented by sexual reproduction. The sexual reproduction produces resting eggs that allow the species to survive harsh conditions and disperse to distant habitats.[4]

References[change | change source]

  1. L. Forró N.M. Korovchinsky, A.A. Kotov & A. Petrusek (2008). "Global diversity of cladocerans (Cladocera; Crustacea) in freshwater" (PDF). In Estelle V. Balian, Christian Lévêque, Hendrik Segers & Koen Martens (ed.). Freshwater animal diversity assessment. Developments in Hydrobiology 198. Vol. 595. pp. 177–184. doi:10.1007/s10750-007-9013-5. ISBN 978-1-4020-8259-7. S2CID 45363782. {{cite book}}: |journal= ignored (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list (link) doi:10.1007/978-1-4020-8259-7_19
  2. 2.0 2.1 Denton Belk (2007). "Branchiopoda". In Sol Felty Light & James T. Carlton (ed.). The Light and Smith Manual: intertidal invertebrates from Central California to Oregon (4th ed.). University of California Press. pp. 414–417. ISBN 9780520239395.
  3. Douglas Grant Smith & Kirstern Work (2001). "Cladoceran Branchiopoda (water fleas)". In Douglas Grant Smith (ed.). Pennak's freshwater invertebrates of the United States: Porifera to Crustacea (4th ed.). Wiley. pp. 453 488. ISBN 9780471358374.
  4. Ellen Decaestecker, Luc De Meester & Joachim Mergaey (2009). "Cyclical parthenogeness in Daphnia: sexual versus asexual reproduction". In Isa Schön, Koen Martens & Peter van Dijk (ed.). Lost sex: the evolutionary biology of parthenogenesis. Springer. pp. 295–316. doi:10.1007/978-90-481-2770-2_15. ISBN 9789048127696. S2CID 82949264.