Palaemon elegans
ARTHROPODA
Decapoda
๐ฆ ๐ฆMeet the rockpool prawn, also known as ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ข๐ฏ๐ด. This little critter can often be spotted in the rocks when the tide retreats.
๐ก๏ธ๐They can tolerate extremely variable environmental conditions, including a wide range of salinities, temperatures and oxygen. As a result, ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ข๐ฏ๐ด can found on the Atlantic ocean West coast from Norway to Mauritania, and in the entire Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea.
๐ฆ๐ฆPrawns belongs to ๐ฟ๐๐๐๐ฅ๐ค๐๐, just like crab and lobsters. The name ๐ฟ๐๐๐๐ฅ๐ค๐๐ originates from Greek roots, ‘๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ค๐ข’ meaning ‘ten’ and ‘๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ด’ meaning ‘foot,’ aptly describing these creatures with ten legs!
๐ฃย ๐ต๏ธโโ๏ธRockpool prawns are masters of camouflage: with their translucent bodies and stripped patterns, they blend seamlessly into their surroundings. This makes them elusive targets for predators and challenging to catch for me !
๐ซ๐ย Thanks to the transparency of this shrimp species ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ข๐ฏ๐ด, you can see the heart beat through their back! Indeed, unlike us with our hearts in the front, insects and crustaceans have theirs on their backs!
๐ฆย ๐งBut here’s the cool part: like all arthropods, shrimps have an open circulatory system, and use a fluid called hemolymph – analogous to blood in vertebrates – to transport nutrients and oxygen around their body cavity. You probably also noticed that hemolymph is not red like blood, but rather blue (in theory! here it looks quite transparent I have to admit๐ ).
