Amphipoda Logo
About | Search taxa | Taxon tree | Distribution | Specimens | Literature | Images | Stats | Newsletter | ID keys | Talitraits | Log in

World Amphipoda Database

(part of WoRMS - the World Register of Marine Species)

Introduction

The amphipods belong to the very diverse crustacean class Malacostraca, which includes other common groups such as crabs, lobsters and shrimp. The order Amphipoda is part of the superorder Peracarida, uniting a diverse group of small shrimp-like taxa that brood their young in a pouch, with no independent larval dispersal stage.

Amphipods are unique in the possession of three pairs of pleopods and three pairs of uropods. In a small minority of cases secondary reduction of the abdomen may result in a loss of one or more pairs (e.g. the Caprellidae). No other malacostracan group possesses more than one pair of uropods. The name Amphipoda means ‘different feet’ and refers to the different forms of the pereopods (legs) which contrasts with the related Isopoda meaning ‘same feet’. Amphipods are variously known as, scuds, shrimp or sideswimmers. Those amphipods that have colonised the land are often referred to as landhoppers and beach dwellers are called sandhoppers or beach/sand fleas.

The order Amphipoda is very diverse and currently contains 10,662 species which are divided into six suborders:

Amphipods range in size from a millimetre in length to the supergiant amphipod Alicella gigantea at 340 mm. Amphipods can be found in all marine habitats (even the deepest ocean trenches e.g. Hirondellea dubia), and have also colonised freshwaters and terrestrial habitats; even ectoparasitic groups are also known among them. There are at least 1870 amphipod species and subspecies recorded from fresh or inland waters accounting for ~ 20 % of the total known amphipod diversity. Amphipods are important herbivores, detritivores, micropredators and scavengers in most environments and they form an important component of marine and freshwater ecosystems.

History and progress

Horton, T.; De Broyer, C.; Bellan-Santini, D.; Coleman, C. O.; Copilaș-Ciocianu, D.; Corbari, L.; Daneliya, M. E.; Dauvin, J.-C.; Decock, W.; Fanini, L.; Fišer, C.; Gasca, R.; Grabowski, M.; Guerra-García, J. M.; Hendrycks, E. A.; Hughes, L. E.; Jaume, D.; Kim, Y.-H.; King, R. A.; Lo Brutto, S.; Lörz, A.-N.; Mamos, T.; Serejo, C. S.; Senna, A. R.; Souza-Filho, J. F.; Tandberg, A. H. S.; Thurston, M. H.; Vader, W.; Väinölä, R.; Valls Domedel, G.; Vandepitte, L.; Vanhoorne, B.; Vonk, R.; White, K. N.; Zeidler, W. (2023). The World Amphipoda Database: history and progress. Records of the Australian Museum. 75(4): 329-342. https://doi.org/10.3853/j.2201-4349.75.2023.1875

Editorial Team:

Coordinating Editors

  • Horton, Tammy: edits higher level amphipod taxa, Lysianassoidea and groups without a specialist editor.
  • De Broyer, Claude: edits higher level amphipod taxa, Lysianassoidea and groups without a specialist editor. Also a RAMS editor.

Editors [tree]

  • Bellan-Santini, Denise: Ampeliscidae
  • Copilaș-Ciocianu, Denis: Behningiellidae, Caspicolidae, Gammaridae, Iphigenellidae, Pontogammaridae
  • Corbari, Laure: Dulichiidae, Photidae
  • Daneliya, Mikhail: Allocrangonyctidae, Austroniphargidae, Crangonyctidae, Crymostygiidae, Dussartiellidae, Kergueleniolidae, Kotumsaridae, Pseudocrangonyctidae, Sandroidae, Sternophysingidae
  • Dauvin, Jean-Claude: Ampeliscidae
  • Desiderato, Andrea: Thematic editor: Amphipoda (Mediterranean)
  • Fišer, Cene: Anisogammaridae, Luciobliviidae, Mesogammaridae, Niphargidae
  • Grabowski, Michal: Behningiellidae, Caspicolidae, Gammarellidae, Gammaridae, Iphigenellidae, Pontogammaridae
  • Guerra-García, José Manuel : Caprellidae, Caprogammaridae
  • Hendrycks, Ed: Oedicerotidae, Pardaliscidae, Pleustidae, Valettiopsidae, Vitjazianidae
  • Hughes, Lauren: Ampithoidae, Aoridae, Kamakidae, Maeridae, Melitidae, Nuuanuidae, Paragammaropsidae, Podoceridae, Talitridae (Talitraits)
  • Jaume, Damià: Artesiidae, Bogidiellidae, Crangoweckeliidae, Eriopisidae, Hadziidae, Melitidae, Metacrangonyctidae, Pseudoniphargidae, Salentinellidae, Seborgiidae, Sensonatoridae
  • Jazdzewski, Krzysztof: Corophiidae, Gammarellidae
  • Kim, Young-Hyo: Atylidae, Dexaminidae
  • King, Rachael: Chillagoeidae, Chiltoniidae, Eriopisidae, Giniphargidae, Neoniphargidae, Paracrangonyctidae, Paramelitidae, Perthiidae, Uronyctidae
  • LeCroy, Sara: Cheluridae, Colomastigidae, Cyamidae
  • Lörz, Anne-Nina: Epimeriidae, Eusiridae
  • Mamos, Tomasz: Gammaridae
  • Rewicz, Tomasz: Thematic editor: Amphipoda (Ponto-Caspian region)
  • Senna, André R.: Cheidae, Condukiidae, Phoxocephalidae, Platyischnopidae, Zobrachoidae
  • Serejo, Cristiana: Biancolinidae, Carangoliopsidae, Ceinidae, Chiltoniidae, Dogielinotidae, Eophliantidae, Hyalellidae, Hyalidae, Kairosidae, Kuriidae, Najnidae, Phliantidae, Plioplateidae, Temnophliantidae, Tulearidae
  • Souza-Filho, Jesser F. : Chevaliidae, Corophiidae, Isaeidae, Ischyroceridae, Megaluropidae, Microprotopidae, Neomegamphopidae, Photidae, Rakiroidae, Unciolidae
  • Tandberg, Anne Helene: Amphilochidae, Bathyporeiidae, Haustoriidae, Stegocephalidae, Stenothoidae, Stilipedidae
  • Thomas, James Darwin: Leucothoidae
  • Thurston, Mike: Calliopiidae, Didymocheliidae, Eusiridae, Lepechinellidae, Lysianassoidea, Phoxocephalopsidae, Pontogeneiidae, Synopiidae, Valettidae
  • Vader, Wim: Bathyporeiidae, Haustoriidae, Stegocephalidae, Stilipedidae
  • Väinölä, Risto: Acanthogammaridae, Baikalogammaridae, Carinogammaridae, Crypturopodidae, Eulimnogammaridae, Gammaracanthidae, Macrohectopidae, Micruropodidae, Ommatogammaridae, Pachyschesidae, Pallaseidae, Pontoporeiidae, Priscillinidae, Typhlogammaridae
  • Valls Domedel, Georgina: Amphipoda
  • Vonk, Ronald: Eriopisidae, Ingolfiellidae, Metaingolfiellidae, Pseudingolfiellidae
  • White, Kristine: Anamixidae, Leucothoidae
  • Zeidler, Wolfgang: Hyperiidea

Links to other Amphipod sites

Feedback

The authors welcome input from visitors to this website who detect errors or omissions: we strive to maintain the website as both a comprehensive and an up-to-date resource. We aim to update the database regularly and frequently.

The taxonomy in the World Amphipod Database is edited and updated by volunteer experts, assisted by the database management team at VLIZ.

Authors are encouraged to send copies of publications to the respective editor with details of new or revised nomenclature.

Acknowledgements

In addition to the editors listed above, numerous colleagues have kindly provided input and corrections for content in the World Amphipoda Database, an effort which is gratefully acknowledged here.

  • For 2020: Tri Arfianti, Nicole Boury-Esnault, Anna Jażdżewska, Christopher W Boyko, Jason Argent, Andreas Völckers, Kathy Conlan, Manuel Ruiz, May Li Uy, Michael Zettler, Laure de Montety, Andrea Desiderato & Rachael Peart
  • For 2021: Inmaculada Frutos, Abdul Rahim, Yaser Bakhshi, Sorcha Cronin-O'Reilly, Clara M. Hereu, Anna Jażdżewska, Sofía Ten & Adam Baldinger
  • For 2022: Pierre Brunel, Christian Ferrer

Citation

Usage of data from the World Amphipoda Database in scientific publications should be acknowledged by citing as follows:

  • Horton, T.; Lowry, J.; De Broyer, C.; Bellan-Santini, D.; Copilaș-Ciocianu, D.; Corbari, L.; Costello, M.J.; Daneliya, M.; Dauvin, J.-C.; Fišer, C.; Gasca, R.; Grabowski, M.; Guerra-García, J.M.; Hendrycks, E.; Hughes, L.; Jaume, D.; Jazdzewski, K.; Kim, Y.-H.; King, R.; Krapp-Schickel, T.; LeCroy, S.; Lörz, A.-N.; Mamos, T.; Senna, A.R.; Serejo, C.; Souza-Filho, J.F.; Tandberg, A.H.; Thomas, J.D.; Thurston, M.; Vader, W.; Väinölä, R.; Valls Domedel, G.; Vonk, R.; White, K.; Zeidler, W. (2024). World Amphipoda Database. Accessed at https://www.marinespecies.org/amphipoda on 2024-03-19. doi:10.14284/368
If the data from the World Amphipoda Database constitute a substantial proportion of the records used in analyses, the chief editor(s) of the database should be contacted. There may be additional data which may prove valuable to such analyses.

Individual pages are individually authored and dated. These can be cited separately: the proper citation is provided at the bottom of each page.
Website and databases developed and hosted by VLIZ · Page generated 2024-03-19 GMT · contact: