The tail of Nephrops norvegicus – the uropods flank the telson; a diaeresis is visible on the exopod (outer part) of each uropod.

Uropods are posterior appendages found on a wide variety of crustaceans. They typically have functions in locomotion.

Definition

Uropods are often defined as the appendages of the last body segment of a crustacean.[1] An alternative definition suggested by Frederick R. Schram restricts the term to those structures arising from the segment before the anal segment (the segment which carries the anus).[1] Under this latter definition, the appendages of the anal segment are caudal rami, which are analogous to uropods.[1]

Form

Uropods are typically biramous – comprising an endopod and an exopod. The exopod is typically the larger, and may be divided in two by a transverse suture known as the diaeresis.[2][3] The uropods may work in concert with the telson to form a "tail fan".[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c Claude Meisch (2007). "On the origin of the putative furca of the Ostracoda Crustacea". In Renate Matzke-Karasz, Koen Martens & Michael Schudack (ed.). Ostracodology – Linking Bio- and Geosciences: Proceedings of the 15th International Symposium on Ostracoda, Berlin, 2005. Developments in Hydrobiology 197. Vol. 585. Springer. pp. 181–200. doi:10.1007/s10750-007-0637-2. ISBN 9781402064173. ((cite book)): |journal= ignored (help)
  2. ^ Dean Pentscheff (ed.). "Diaeresis". Crustacea Glossary. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
  3. ^ S. S. Lal (2009). "Palaemon malcolmsonii". Practical Zoology: Invertebrate. Rastogi Publications. pp. 395–403. ISBN 978-81-7133-924-2.
  4. ^ Dean Pentscheff (ed.). "Uropod". Crustacea Glossary. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
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