Freshwater Crustaceans

Crustaceans that live in freshwater can vary in size. There are small water fleas which are less than one millimetre in length and freshwater shrimps such as the Fairy Shrimp which is around two centimetres long. We also have the White-clawed Crayfish which is much larger with a length of approximately ten centimetres. All these crustaceans have an exoskeleton of tough chitin and all have jointed bodies, jointed legs and antennae. They are all arthropods and are all native to England. We have included the Fairy Shrimp and the White-clawed Crayfish in our A-Z.