Triops Longicaudatus
Major species - Triops longicaudatus
Subspecies none official*
Habitat - Temporary waters (a common inhabitant of rice fields in the U.S. and Japan)
Temperature range - Minimum Temp: 18°C (60°F) Maximum Temp: 30°C (86°F)
Body ring/segments 35 - 44, 5 - 12 apodous in females, 10 - 14 apodous in males
Appendages 54 - 66
Reproduction - Bisexual (with both male and female biased populations known), unisexual, and hermaphroditic
Life span - Approximately 80-90 days. Usually half this in an Aquarium.
T. longicaudatus is your " garden variety" triops. This is the species that gets sold throughout the world in triops kits. It is the most studied of all the Triops and Lepidurus species and, hence, the one we know the most about.
Because it is studied more than any other species genetic data suggest that there are probably several if not dozens of subspecies currently lumped together as a single macrospecies. At the level of gross anatomy, there are two distinct morphs: a long form and a short form which can be distinguished by the number of segments/tail length not covered by the carapace.
Subspecies none official*
Habitat - Temporary waters (a common inhabitant of rice fields in the U.S. and Japan)
Temperature range - Minimum Temp: 18°C (60°F) Maximum Temp: 30°C (86°F)
Body ring/segments 35 - 44, 5 - 12 apodous in females, 10 - 14 apodous in males
Appendages 54 - 66
Reproduction - Bisexual (with both male and female biased populations known), unisexual, and hermaphroditic
Life span - Approximately 80-90 days. Usually half this in an Aquarium.
T. longicaudatus is your " garden variety" triops. This is the species that gets sold throughout the world in triops kits. It is the most studied of all the Triops and Lepidurus species and, hence, the one we know the most about.
Because it is studied more than any other species genetic data suggest that there are probably several if not dozens of subspecies currently lumped together as a single macrospecies. At the level of gross anatomy, there are two distinct morphs: a long form and a short form which can be distinguished by the number of segments/tail length not covered by the carapace.