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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Crustaceans (Crustacea) » Malacostracans (Malacostraca) » Marsupial Crustaceans (Peracarida) » Isopods (Isopoda) » Scutocoxifera » Valve-tailed Isopods (Valvifera) » Idoteidae » Idotea » Idotea balthica
Photo#655749
Idotea balthica
Copyright © 2012 metrioptera

Idotea balthica
Kennebunk, York County, Maine, USA
June 11, 2012
Size: 1.1 cm
Found on a sand ocean beach.
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Contributed by metrioptera on 11 June, 2012 - 8:15pm
Last updated 22 June, 2015 - 3:04pm

Moved
Moved from Idoteidae. The Arthrostraca of Connecticut notes, "From Cape Cod southward the species is abundant, but towards the north it is replaced by I. phosphorea. However, BugGuide has three I. balthica submissions from the Gulf of Maine and none of I. phosphorea. Climate change over the last century perhaps? If someone could survey the Idotea anywhere in the Gulf of Maine (I'm based to the south), I'd be interested to see the relative abundance of these species. Note: WoRMS lists 26 species in the genus, only three of which may be found in the northeast US, all three of which I can confidently ID, so this is definitely balthica.
… Aaron Hunt, 22 June, 2015 - 2:54pm login or register to post comments

 
very cool, thanks!
Glad to see someone tackling these intertidal crustaceans! There hasn't been too much activity in the crustacean part of BG. I suspect many people don't even know that BG covers these critters.

May have to head down to the beach and see if I can collect some more of these sort of things for photos.
… metrioptera, 22 June, 2015 - 3:11pm login or register to post comments

Moved
Moved from Isopods.
… metrioptera, 12 June, 2015 - 7:05am login or register to post comments

Likely Idotea phosphorea
There may be some Gulf of Maine species I'm not familiar with though. Definitely Idoteidae.
… Aaron Hunt, 11 June, 2015 - 10:44pm login or register to post comments

Moved
Moved from Crustaceans.
… Ray Fisher, 3 December, 2012 - 2:17pm login or register to post comments

Moved
Moved from ID Request.
… Brad Barnd, 7 July, 2012 - 2:19am login or register to post comments

cool; was it alive? looks pretty damn marine
… v belov, 12 June, 2012 - 8:24am login or register to post comments

 
it was dead
and seemed to have been there for a while, as it was pretty hardened. I think I recall seeing something similar in tidal pools once; probably is marine.
… metrioptera, 12 June, 2012 - 8:49am login or register to post comments

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