Ligia australiensis | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Malacostraca |
Order: | Isopoda |
Suborder: | Oniscidea |
Family: | Ligiidae |
Genus: | Ligia |
Species: | L. australiensis |
Binomial name | |
Ligia australiensis Dana, 1853 | |
Distribution of L. australiensis based on available literature |
Ligia australiensis, the Australian marine slater, is a woodlouse in the family Ligiidae. [1]
It can be found quite readily along the southern coast of Australia, including Tasmania, hiding under a huge variety of cover. It is not found as often on the coast of New South Wales, although it can be found in abundance in estuaries. [2]
L. australienses is a frequent meal for the burrowing shore crab ( Leptograpsodes octodentatus ), [3] occasionally for the sacred kingfisher ( Todiramphus sanctus ), [4] and possibly the Pedra Branca skink ( Niveoscincus palfreymani ). [5]
Freycinet National Park is a national park on the east coast of Tasmania, Australia, 125 kilometres (78 mi) northeast of Hobart. It occupies a large part of the Freycinet Peninsula, named after French navigator Louis de Freycinet, and Schouten Island. Founded in 1916, it is Tasmania's oldest park, along with Mount Field National Park. Bordering the national park is the small settlement of Coles Bay, and the largest nearby town is Swansea. Freycinet contains part of the rugged Tasmanian coastline and includes the secluded Wineglass Bay. Features of the park include its red and pink granite formations and a series of jagged granite peaks in a line, called "The Hazards".
Carinascincus is a genus of skinks, commonly called snow skinks or cool-skinks and residing mainly in Tasmania or Victoria, Australia. Then recognised as the genus Niveoscincus, it was found to belong to a clade with the genera Carlia, Lampropholis and others of the Eugongylus group within Lygosominae. Cogger has rejected the use of the junior name Niveoscincus and recognizes the valid senior generic name Carinascincus for the group. For similar skinks see genera Pseudemoia, Lampropholis, and Bassiana. These skinks have adapted to the cooler weather of southern Australia and particularly Tasmania, hence the common names.
The Pacific gull is a very large gull, native to the coasts of Australia. It is moderately common between Carnarvon in the west, and Sydney in the east, although it has become scarce in some parts of the south-east, as a result of competition from the kelp gull, which has "self-introduced" since the 1940s.
Isopoda is an order of crustaceans. Members of this group are called Isopods and include both terrestrial and aquatic species such as woodlice. All have rigid, segmented exoskeletons, two pairs of antennae, seven pairs of jointed limbs on the thorax, and five pairs of branching appendages on the abdomen that are used in respiration. Females brood their young in a pouch under their thorax.
Mangrove forests, also called mangrove swamps, mangrove thickets or mangals, are productive wetlands that occur in coastal intertidal zones. Mangrove forests grow mainly at tropical and subtropical latitudes because mangroves cannot withstand freezing temperatures. There are about 80 different species of mangroves, all of which grow in areas with low-oxygen soil, where slow-moving waters allow fine sediments to accumulate.
The shy albatross, also known as shy mollymawk, is a medium-sized albatross that breeds on three remote islands off the coast of Tasmania, Australia, in the southern Indian Ocean. Its lifespan is about 60 years, and it has been seen as far afield as South Africa and the Pacific coast of the United States. As of June 2020, the species is listed as "Endangered" in Australia; there are thought to be 15,000 pairs of shy albatross left. It is Australia's only endemic albatross.
Carcinus maenas is a common littoral crab. It is known by different names around the world. In the British Isles, it is generally referred to as the shore crab, or green shore crab. In North America and South Africa, it bears the name European green crab.
The swift parrot is a species of broad-tailed parrot, found only in southeastern Australia. The species breeds in Tasmania during the summer and migrates north to south eastern mainland Australia from Griffith-Warialda in New South Wales and west to Adelaide in the winter. It is a nomadic migrant, and it settles in an area only when there is food available. The Swift Parrot was voted 2023 Bird of the Year in The Guardian Australia and BirdLife Australia’s biennial poll.
Pedra Branca is a rock islet in the Southern Ocean, off the southern coast of Tasmania, Australia. The island is situated approximately 26 km (16 mi) south southeast of South East Cape and is contained within the Southwest National Park, part of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Site. An erosional remnant of the Tasmanian mainland, the island is approximately 270 m (890 ft) long, 100 m (330 ft) wide, with an elevation of 60 m (200 ft) above sea level. The island is estimated to have separated from the Tasmanian mainland at least 15,000 years ago.
Eddystone is a tower-shaped rock or small island, located in the Southern Ocean, off the southern coast of Tasmania, Australia. The island is situated approximately 27 km (17 mi) from the South East Cape on a bearing of 149° and is contained within the Southwest National Park, part of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Site. An erosional remnant of the Tasmanian mainland with an elevation of 30 m (98 ft) above sea level, the island is estimated to have separated from the Tasmanian mainland at least 15,000 years ago.
The southern ningaui is a tiny marsupial carnivore belonging to the Dasyuridae family. Similar in appearance to Ningaui ridei, found throughout central Australia, this species occurs in spinifex on semi-arid sandplains across the southern coast of the continent. The fur is a tawny or greyish olive colour, light grey below, and distinguished by shades of cinnamon. The southern ningaui prefers smaller prey, including insects and spiders, but capable of killing and consuming larger animals such as cockroaches and skinks. Their narrow muzzle is used with quick and fierce bites about the head to despatch their meal. The species was first described in 1983, and placed within the genus Ningaui.
Hemigrapsus sanguineus, the Japanese shore crab or Asian shore crab, is a species of crab from East Asia. It has been introduced to several other regions, and is now an invasive species in North America and Europe. It was introduced to these regions by ships from Asia emptying their ballast tanks in coastal waters.
Carinascincus palfreymani, known commonly as the Pedra Branca skink, as well as the Palfreyman's window-eyed skink, the Pedra Branca cool-skink, or the red-throated skink, is a species of skink in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to Australia, and is restricted to the windswept Pedra Branca, an island off southern Tasmania of only 2.5 ha, where it is dependent on the seabird colonies. It is the only lizard species found on the island.
The southern water skink, cool-temperate water-skink, highland water skink, or Dreeite water skink is a medium-sized species of skink that is endemic to Australia. These skinks are found in New South Wales, South Australia, Victoria as well as on Tasmania's Rodondo Island in the Bass Strait. They are viviparous, mating in spring, and giving birth to live young in mid to late summer.
The spotted skink, sometimes called the ocellated cool-skink or ocellated skink, is a skink endemic to Tasmania, Australia. It is a ground-dwelling, viviparous species, usually found in rocky habitats, and widespread in the northern and eastern parts of the state, as well as in the eastern Bass Strait islands. It is often found at Arthurs Lake in the Central Highlands of Tasmania.
Richea scoparia is a species of plant endemic to Tasmania. The genus Richea, forms part of the Ericaceae family, which are commonly heath-like shrubs. The name refers to the erect bushy growth habit, described as a broom-like shrub, most commonly referred to as the honey bush or simply scoparia to many bushwalkers.
Cyclograpsus granulosus, the purple mottled shore crab or smooth shore crab, is an Australasian crab species.
Ligia is a genus of isopods, commonly known as rock lice or sea slaters. Most Ligia species live in tidal zone cliffs and rocky beaches, but there are several fully terrestrial species which occur in high-humidity environments.
Ligia dilatata is a woodlouse in the family Ligiidae.
William Stephenson MBE (1916–1996) was a British/Australian marine biologist and academic.