European tadpole shrimp

Triops cancriformis · Triops cancriformis is a tadpole shrimp found across Europe to the Middle East and India.

European tadpole shrimp
Photo: Dat doris, CC BY-SA 4.0
European tadpole shrimp
Photo: Dat doris, CC BY-SA 4.0
European tadpole shrimp
Photo: Sam Thomas, CC BY-SA 2.0

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumArthropoda
ClassBranchiopoda
OrderNotostraca
FamilyTriopsidae
GenusTriops
SpeciesTriops cancriformis

Where it lives

Temporary pools and rice fields from Britain across the Middle East to India.

Fun facts

  • In the wild these shrimp can grow up to 11 centimetres long, nearly double the size they usually reach in captivity.
  • They grow up fast, reaching full maturity in only about two weeks after hatching.
  • Some populations are made almost entirely of hermaphrodites with just a few males, a mating system that is extremely rare among animals.
  • Individuals can carry testicular tissue scattered among their ovaries, proving they are true hermaphrodites rather than clones.

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Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).