iphimediid amphipod Echiniphimedia sp., possibly hodgsoni

Echiniphimedia hodgsoni is found in Antarctica and the Antarctic Peninsula, South Shetland Islands, South Orkney Islands, and South Georgia Island, at depths from 20 to 1,120 meters [1]


Echiniphimedia hodgsoni feeds on sponges with a special cutting mechanism [2,3] Sponge spicules found in the gut of E. hodgsoni correspond to haplosclerid sponges, possibly the genera Gellius, Hemigellius, or Haliclona [2] Gut content analysis of E. hodgsoni indicates that diatoms are either a food source or a prey item for a food source [3]

1: Catalogue of the Marine Gammaridean Amphipoda of the Southern Ocean. JK Lowry, S Bullock. Wellington : Royal Society of New Zealand, 1976. Royal Society of New Zealand Bulletin 16; 2: Polar Biology 9(5):287-294, 1989; 3: Polar Biology 24(11):853-862, 2001

Text ©Peter Brueggeman. Photographs ©Paul Cziko. Photographs may not be used in any form without the express written permission of Paul Cziko.