Branchinecta


Branchinecta is a genus of crustacean in family Branchinectidae. It includes around 50 species, found on all continents except Africa and Australia. Branchinecta gigas, the giant fairy shrimp, is the largest species in the order, with a length of up to, and Branchinecta brushi lives at the highest altitude of any crustacean, at, a record it shares with the copepod Boeckella palustris. A new genus, Archaebranchinecta was established in 2011 for two species previously placed in Branchinecta.