Arthropod Lab.
by Benito Toscano - Guzman PAP Bio P6
Objectives
- Examine two preserved arthropods - a grasshopper and a crayfish.
- Look for similarities in these two animals that may be phylum traits.
- Look for differences in these two animals that may be class traits. Grasshoppers belong to the class Insecta whereas crayfish belong to the class Crustacea.
Background Information
- The scientific name for a grasshopper is, Caelifera.
- The scientific name for a crayfish is, Astacoidea.
- Grasshoppers tend to live in grassy areas.
- Crayfish tend to live in lakes, streams, rivers, and ponds.
- Grasshoppers eat grasses, leaves and cereal crops.
- Grasshoppers get eaten by toads, frogs, or mice.
- Crayfish eat just about anything around them!
- Crayfish get eaten by opossums, owls, foxes, raccoons, snakes, muskrats, turtles, newts, yellow perch, and blue gill fish.
- One adaptation a grasshopper has is their powerful legs which are used for jumping.
- One adaptation of a crayfish is eyes on short stems that move around, allowing them to see in all directions just by turning the stems.
Here's a picture of me with our crayfish.
Here's a picture of both our crayfish and our grasshopper.
This video shows the anatomy of a grasshopper.
Grasshopper Anatomy Part 1
Here is the labeled external anatomy of a grasshopper.
Here is a video that shows the anatomy of the crayfish.
Crayfish Anatomy Part 1
Here is the labeled external anatomy of a crayfish.
The Skeletal System of the Crayfish and the Grasshopper.
The main thing that these two organisms have in common is the exoskeleton. These function to support and protect the organism. Another part of the skeletal system is the jointed appendages. The combined forces of these two parts of the skeletal system allow the organism to have support, and protection, as well as the ability to move.