Copepods
They are small
crustaceans that live in
seas, lakes, and ponds. Copepods are very necessary in
the food cycle because many animals consume them. There
are 10 types of copepods and over 4500 species. The
free-swimming copepods move through the water in jumpy
motions by moving their swimming legs.
Body:
Being
less than 1 mm long, Copepods have a hard exoskeleton,
many legs for swimming and gathering food, a separated
body, and jointed appendages.They have a single simple
eye in the middle of the head which can only distinguish
light and dark. There are two pairs of antenna.
Food:
They eat
bacteria, diatoms, and other
tiny, single-celled organisms in the water. Maxillae
thrust food towards the mandibles to process the food.
Predators:
Free-swimming copepods are a part of
zooplankton and are eaten by
many organisms, including mussels, fish and fish larvae,
squid, sea birds, and mammals (like baleen whales and
some seals).
Reproduction:
The female copepod produces many
eggs that carry in one or two egg sacs that are attached
to her stomach.
