Tegastidae

Tegastidae
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Copepoda
Order:	Harpacticoida
Family:	Tegastidae G. O. Sars, 1904

Tegastidae is a family of copepods, which are characterised by having laterally compressed bodies (resembling that of an amphipod), a claw-like mandible in the nauplius stage, and by a modified male genital complex. ^[1] Species have been described in seven genera. Two species of Smacigastes are found at hydrothermal vents, while the remaining species are found in shallow water, associated with algae, bryozoans and cnidarians, such as corals. ^[1]

An infestation of Tegastes on an acroporid

The seven genera are: ^{[2] [3]}

• Aglaogastes Huys, 2016
• Arawella Cottarelli & Baldari, 1987
• Feregastes Fiers, 1986
• Parategastes Sars, 1904
• Smacigastes Ivanenko & Defaye, 2004
• Syngastes Monard, 1924
• Tegastes Norman, 1903

References

1. Sabine Gollner, Viatcheslav N. Ivanenko & Pedro Martinez Arbizu (2008). "A new species of deep-sea Tegastidae (Crustacea: Copepoda: Harpacticoida) from 9°50´N on the East Pacific Rise, with remarks on its ecology" (PDF). Zootaxa . 1866: 323–326.
2. "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Tegastidae Sars G.O., 1904". www.marinespecies.org. Retrieved 2025-10-12.
3. Kim, Jong Guk; Cho, Kyuhee; Lee, Jimin (2023-10-31). "Four New Species of the Family Tegastidae (Copepoda, Harpacticoida) from Shallow Waters of Korea". Animal Systematics, Evolution and Diversity. 39 (4): 218–247. doi:10.5635/ASED.2023.39.4.024.