Ligia oceanica

Ligia oceanica, the sea slater, common sea slater, or sea roach, is a woodlouse, living in the littoral zone—rocky seashores of the European North Sea and Atlantic coastlines.

Ligia oceanica
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Malacostraca
Superorder: Peracarida
Order: Isopoda
Suborder: Oniscidea
Family: Ligiidae
Genus: Ligia
Species:
L. oceanica
Binomial name
Ligia oceanica
Synonyms 
  • Oniscus oceanicus Linnaeus, 1767
  • Ligia belgica Ritzema Bos, 1874
  • Ligia granulata Frey & Leuckart, 1847
  • Ligia oniscoides Brébisson, 1825
  • Ligia scopulorum Leach, 1814
  • Ligydia oceanica (Linnaeus, 1767)
  • Oniscus assimilis Linnaeus, 1767

L. oceanica is oval, twice as long as broad, and may reach up to 30 mm (1.2 in) in length, making it one of the largest oniscid isopods. Its colour may vary from grey to olive green, and it has large compound eyes and long antennae, two-thirds as long as its body. They are found in temperate waters from Norway to the Mediterranean Sea, and from Cape Cod north to Maine. It is a common species, occurring wherever the substrate of the littoral zone is rocky, and is especially common in crevices and rock pools and under stones. It is a nocturnal omnivore, eating many kinds of seaweed, diatoms, and detritus, with a particular fondness for bladder wrack (Fucus vesiculosus). Individuals live for 212–3 years and usually breed only once.

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