Pycnogonum litorale
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| Pycnogonum litorale | |
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Pycnogonida |
| Order: | Pantopoda |
| Family: | Pycnogonidae |
| Genus: | Pycnogonum |
| Species: | P. litorale |
| Binomial name | |
| Pycnogonum litorale | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
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Pycnogonum litorale is a marine arthropod in the family Pycnogonidae, the sea spiders. It is found in the northern Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel and the western Mediterranean Sea.
Pycnogonum litorale has a head, a small slender prosome (thorax) and a tiny opisthosome (abdomen), the trunk being up to 1 cm (0.4 in) in length. The head bears two pairs of eyes and a long, tapering proboscis, and in males, a pair of slender curved appendages called ovigers, which are used in reproduction. The prosome consists of four segments, each bearing a pair of relatively long, robust walking legs which each have nine segments and terminate with a claw; the prosome is too small to house all the internal organs, so these extend into the limbs. The colour of this sea spider is somewhat variable, being yellowish, pale brown or reddish-brown. Males tend to be darker than females, individuals that have recently fed tend to be darker than those that have not, while those that have recently moulted tend to be pale.[2] They grow up to 25mm
