Philoscia muscorum
| Moosassel | ||||||||||||
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Moosassel (Philoscia muscorum) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Philoscia muscorum | ||||||||||||
| Scopoli , 1763 |
The striped moss louse Philoscia muscorum belongs to the land lice . It is also called wood louse.
description
It is usually marbled brown or reddish, with a black back line. The head is darker than the rest of the body, which is smooth and very shiny. The antennae whip is tripartite and there is a distinct edge between the narrow pleon and the wider peraeon . No frontal or lateral lobes are visible on the head. The posterior corners of the first peraeomer are not drawn back. Adult animals reach body lengths of approximately 9 mm. In the event of danger, the Moosassel can run away very quickly and stand out quite high off the ground with its long legs. After a short sprint, it often remains motionless so as not to attract predators.
Habitat and Distribution
The Moosassel occurs in more humid and open places, such as forest edges, gardens, meadows or at the edge of ditches. It is often found in leaves, under moss, in hollow plant stems or in bulbs of grass, as well as under bark and dead wood. It is a common species found in much of Europe. Its main distribution area extends from Norway and Sweden in the north to Greece in the south, from France in the west to Poland in the east. It could also occur in the Baltic States and in Spain and Portugal. It was introduced to Northeast America, where it has become very common.
Similar species
The related species Philoscia affinis usually has a light brown marbled head and no white line that runs along the edges of the body. Although this is a very good indicator in most cases, the seventh leg of a male should be examined for an exact distinction. It should be noted that Philoscia muscorum young not yet colored also have a light brown head.
The marsh louse Ligidium hypnorum has a superficial resemblance to the moss louse, but the antenna whip consists of many small segments (about 10), while the moss louse has only three segments. The shape of the uropods is also very different.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b M.P. Berg, H. Wijnhofen: Landpissebedden: Een tabel voor de landpissebedden (Crustacea; Oniscidae) van Nederland en België . KNNV Uitgeverij, Utrecht 1997, p. 80 .
- ↑ Philoscia muscorum (Scopoli, 1763) | Fauna Europaea. Retrieved November 25, 2019 .
- ↑ P. Boeraeve et al: Philoscia affinis Verhoeff, 1908 new to Belgium (Isopoda: Philosciidae). 2017, accessed July 8, 2019 .
- ↑ Ligidium hypnorum (Cuvier, 1792) | BMIG. Retrieved July 8, 2019 .