Decapods: structural features, representatives, photos. Lobsters, lobsters, shrimp

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:44

In our article we want to talk about decapods. They have been widely known for a long time. With their large size and excellent taste properties, decapods have long been an object of fishing.

Decapod Squad

Of the variety of crustaceans, decapods are the most popular. One has only to remember the crayfish, which have long been the heroes of numerous fables and fairy tales.

Decapods are commercial species. If we talk about their capture, then, for example, in 1962, more than one million tons of crabs, lobsters, shrimp and lobsters were caught, which is twice as much as the catch of all salmon. In Russia, fishing for king crabs takes place in large vessels, which are floating seafood processing plants.

Decapods are fairly common around the world. They are found in all seas and oceans, starting from the very edge of the water and up to five kilometers deep. Tropical waters are especially rich in decapods, shrimp, crabs and lobsters live here. Crayfish live in fresh lakes and rivers.

Decapod crayfish order - the highest crustaceans fromarthropod animals. This group has more than 8.5 thousand varieties. Among them, there are even those that have long since switched to a terrestrial way of life.

Shrimp

Real shrimp are small marine crustaceans that live in almost all seas. All varieties are very different in size. Among chefs, the most popular are quite expensive and large tiger prawns with stripes on the shell. They are grown on special farms in Southeast Asia. But there is another large shrimp called jumbo, which reaches thirty centimeters. European shrimp of small size, which live in the Norwegian fjords (Skaggerak Strait), are also valued.

When buying real shrimp in the supermarket, please note that there are numbers on the package that indicate how many pieces per kilogram. Medium-sized shrimp have indicators - 90/120. That is, a kilogram contains from 90 to one hundred and twenty individuals.

The structure and nutrition of shrimp

The body of shrimp is covered with a chitinous cover, which periodically changes during molting. Individuals have five pairs of swimming legs. Using a sharp contraction and relaxation of the abdomen, shrimp are able to swim backwards. These creatures are armed with large antennae-whiskers, which serve not only for smell, touch, but also for orientation in space.

Shrimp can only see up close. For orientation, they are mostly antennae.

Like the restcrustaceans, shrimps eat a variety of food: dying plants, organic remains. Animals will not refuse to eat insects. But in most cases they feed on carrion.

The large shrimp that live on the shelf of the African coast prefer to stick to muddy areas near river mouths. During the day they burrow into the ground, and after dark they begin to look for prey.

Ecuador ranks first in the export of crustaceans, breeding them on specialized farms. The shrimp are fed here with special compound feeds, although in their natural environment they prefer small crustaceans and algae. This food makes shrimp shells very strong.

Lobsters or lobsters

Lobster (see photo in the article) also belongs to the order of decapods. These creatures live in the region of rocks on the continental shelves in the warm and cold waters of the ocean. There are different types of lobsters, depending on their taste. The most valuable are considered to be Norwegian and Atlantic lobsters (the second name of lobsters). They are not very large, about 22 centimeters, but they have excellent taste characteristics, which is why they are appreciated by gourmets. But European lobsters are much larger. They weigh up to ten kilograms with a length of ninety centimeters. Lobsters live in the seas of the western coast of Europe, from the Scandinavian Peninsula to the African coast.

There is another type of lobster called American. It weighs about twenty kilograms and at the same time has a meter length. These ten-legged crustaceans are impressive in their size. Such giants live off the coast of the Atlantic Ocean (from the shores of North Carolina to Labrador). However, experts say that the American lobster (photo is given in the article) is more striking in its outlandish size than in taste characteristics. And yet, it is bred in artificial conditions on special farms.

I would like to note that lobster, lobster is the name of the same representative of decapods. Different countries use different terms.

Lobster appearance

Outwardly, these ten-legged crayfish are painfully similar to their freshwater relatives (crayfish). But they differ in their impressive size. In addition, they have very large claws. The color of lobsters can be quite different, it varies from green-blue to gray-green. The antennae are always red and the tail resembles a fan. The meat from the tail of the lobster has a very dense texture, escalopes and medallions are prepared from it. Males are much larger than females. Lobster meat under a transparent shell is white, tender and fragrant. During cooking, the decapod's skin changes color to an intense red, which is why it is nicknamed the "sea cardinal".

Crawfish

Lobster is a representative of marine crustaceans (decapods). Outwardly, it looks like a lobster, but it does not have large claws. Such creatures are found in warm Atlantic waters near the coasts of America and Europe, in the Pacific Ocean near the coasts of California, as well as Mexico, in the Mediterranean Sea, off the coasts of South Africa, Japan, NewZealand, Australia. Cooked lobster is one of the most expensive dishes in restaurants in the Bahamas, Belize, Bali, Thailand and numerous Caribbean islands.

Very often lobsters are larger than lobsters. The length of some individuals reaches fifty centimeters, and their weight at the same time reaches three kilograms. The weight of the largest lobster is eleven kilograms, while its length was about a meter.

Outwardly, it is quite easy to distinguish between a lobster and a lobster. The lobster has numerous spines on its shell and no large claws. Only the tail and belly of this tithe are eaten. The meat has a delicate flavor.

Reproduction of spiny lobsters

Puberty lobsters reach the age of five, they reproduce sexually. Females lay eggs in a special bag on the body, later they are fertilized by male reproductive products. After a couple of months, small larvae appear, which calmly swim in the water. Very quickly they become small lobsters and go to live at the bottom. Gradually, from small creatures, they turn into adults. At the same time, in the first year of life, molting of the chitinous cover occurs monthly.

Crawfish grow quite slowly, but they are not at all threatened with extinction, perhaps this is due to their benthic lifestyle.

Instead of afterword

Lobster, spiny lobster, shrimp are representatives of decapod crustaceans. For peopleis of interest, first of all, their tasty and he althy meat. However, one should not forget about their importance in nature, because they are an integral part of natural food chains, since they are food for fish and pinnipeds. At the same time, they themselves eat small animals and invertebrates.