Talitridae | |
---|---|
Talitrus saltator | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Subphylum: | Crustacea |
Class: | Malacostraca |
Order: | Amphipoda |
Suborder: | Gammaridea |
Family: |
Talitridae Rafinesque, 1815 |
Genera | |
See text. |
See text.
Talitridae is a family of amphipods. Terrestrial species are often referred to as landhoppers and beach dwellers are called sandhoppers or sand fleas. The name sand flea is misleading, because these talitrid amphipods do not bite people.
Marine amphipods are often washed up in the strandline, but die rapidly on drying out. Talitrids differ in being able to survive for a long time out of water; some Southern Hemisphere species are entirely terrestrial.
It contains the following genera: