Sapphirinidae
{{Short description|Family of crustaceans}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| image = Haeckel Copepoda Sapphirina darwinii.jpg
| image_upright = 0.8
| image_caption = Sapphirina darwinii with egg cases
| taxon = Sapphirinidae
| authority = Thorell, 1859
| subdivision_ranks = Genera
| subdivision = See text
}}
Sapphirinidae is a family of parasitic copepods in the order Cyclopoida.{{BioRef|WoRMS|title=Sapphirinidae Thorell, 1859 |id=128595 |access-date=21 January 2023}}
Description
Males come in a variety of bright and flashy colors. In contrast, the females are transparent. The reason for this sexual dimorphism is that males need to attract the attention of females in order to mate.{{Cite journal|title=Symbiotic associations of crustaceans and a pycnogonid with gelatinous zooplankton in the Gulf of California|last=Gasca,Browne|first=Rebeca, William E|date=2017|journal=Marine Biodiversity|volume=48 |issue=4 |pages=1767–1775 |doi=10.1007/s12526-017-0668-5 |s2cid=17473587 }}
Genera
The family Sapphirinidae consists of the following genera:
- Copilia Dana, 1849
- Sapphirina J. Thompson, 1830
- Vettoria C. B. Wilson, 1924
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Commons category-inline}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q3473199}}
{{Copepod-stub}}