Arthropoda · arthropods

Giant isopod

Bathynomus giganteus

Cirolanidae · scavenging isopodsIUCN: Not evaluated
Giant isopod
Photo: NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons · resized

A giant deep-sea relative of the pill bug.

Fun factA captive one in Japan went more than five years without eating.

Waters
Northwest Atlantic, Tropical Atlantic & Caribbean
Depth zone
Deep sea & continental slope
Diet
Carrion
Size
Up to 50 cm

Classification

Arthropoda › Malacostraca › Isopoda › Cirolanidae

  1. Kingdom Animalia animals
    • Many-celled organisms that eat other living things for energy (heterotrophs)
    • Cells have no cell walls
    • Most can move at some stage of life
  2. Clade Bilateria bilateral animals
    • Body has a left and right side that mirror each other (bilateral symmetry)
    • Head end with concentrated nerves; three tissue layers
    • Includes about 99% of all living animal species
  3. Clade Protostomia protostomes
    • In the embryo, the first opening usually becomes the mouth
    • Main nerve cord runs along the belly (ventral)
    • Includes mollusks, worms, and arthropods
  4. Clade Ecdysozoa molting animals
    • Grow by shedding their outer layer (molting, ecdysis)
    • No cilia used for movement
    • Includes arthropods and nematode worms
  5. Phylum Arthropoda arthropods
    • Hard outer skeleton made of chitin (exoskeleton)
    • Jointed legs and a segmented body
    • The largest animal phylum by species count
  6. Subphylum Crustacea crustaceans
    • Two pairs of antennae
    • Branched (biramous) legs in many species
    • Most breathe with gills
  7. Class Malacostraca crabs, shrimp & kin
    • Body of a head, 8-segment thorax, and 6-segment abdomen
    • Includes crabs, shrimp, lobsters, krill, and isopods
  8. Order Isopoda isopods
    • Flattened bodies with seven pairs of similar legs
    • Includes pill bugs on land and giant isopods in the deep sea
  9. Family Cirolanidae scavenging isopods
    • Scavenging isopods, including the giant deep-sea isopods
  10. Genus Bathynomus
    • Species in the same genus are very close relatives and often look alike.
  11. Species Bathynomus giganteus Giant isopod

Closest relatives in the guide