CHAPTER XVI 



THE STOMATOPODA 

 DIVISION HOPLOCARIDA. 



Order Stomatopoda, Latreille (1817). 



FOR a definition of the Division Hoplocarida, see p. 149. 



Historical. The common and conspicuous Squilla mantis of the 

 Mediterranean can hardly have escaped notice in antiquity, and it 

 is surprising that it cannot be identified with certainty among the 

 Crustacea mentioned by Aristotle. It was described by Rondelet 

 (1555) under the generic name which it still bears. The group 

 Stomatopoda, as defined by Latreille in 1817, had practically the 

 limits now assigned to it, though some larvae were admitted to 

 generic rank along with the adults. By H. Milne-Edwards the group 

 was extended to include not only the " Schizopoda," but also some 

 larval and adult Decapods (Phyllosoma, Leucifer, etc.). Restricted 

 by subsequent writers to the single family Squillidae, the Order has 

 generally been ranked along with " Schizopoda " and Decapoda in 

 the group Podophthalma, though Huxley and, later, Grobben have 

 pointed out the great differences separating the Stomatopoda from 

 the other stalk-eyed groups. 



The first details as to the larval metamorphosis of the Order 

 were given by F. Miiller (1862-64). Claus, in a remarkable memoir 

 (1871), traced out several developmental series. Later workers, 

 especially Brooks (1886) and Hansen (1895), have succeeded in 

 referring many larvae to the various genera and species of adults. 

 It is to be noted, however, as Hansen has pointed out, that the 

 number of specific forms among the larvae exceeds that of the 

 known adult species. 



MORPHOLOGY. 



The general appearance of the Stomatopoda is highly character- 

 istic and very constant throughout the group. Its most striking 

 features are due to the great development of the abdominal region 

 and its appendages, the small size of the carapace, and the large 

 and peculiarly formed raptorial limbs. 



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