Medical Dictionary Online

Isopoda

One of the largest orders of mostly marine CRUSTACEA, containing over 10,000 species. Like AMPHIPODA, the other large order in the superorder Peracarida, members are shrimp-like in appearance, have sessile compound eyes, and no carapace. But unlike Amphipoda, they possess abdominal pleopods (modified as gills) and their bodies are dorsoventrally flattened.