How many legs does a shrimp have?

Shrimp are widespread. There are thousands of species adapted to a wide variety of habitats. They can be found near the seabed on most shores and estuaries. To avoid predators, some species are dumped from the seabed and dive into the sediment. They usually live from one to seven years. Shrimp are often solitary, although they can form large colonies during the spawning season.

They play an important role in the food chain and are an important food source for large animals, from fish to whales. The muscular tails of many shrimp are edible to humans and are raised for human consumption. Commercial shrimp species support a $ 50 billion a year industry, and in 2010 the total commercial shrimp production was about 7 million tonnes. In the 1980s, especially in China, shrimp farming became more common, and by 2007 the harvest from shrimp farms exceeded that of wild shrimp.

Anatomy: Shrimp range from a small fraction of an inch to 9 inches (a few mm to 23 cm). These crustaceans have a thin, smooth, rigid and almost transparent exoskeleton. Shrimp vary widely in color; tropical varieties are often brightly colored. Shrimp have 5 pairs of articulated walking legs on the rib cage, and they have 5 pairs of swimming legs (swimmer) and 3 pairs of upper limbs (food appendages) on the abdomen. The body, legs, swimmer and other appendages are segmented. Shrimp have two pairs of segmented sensory antennae, a caudal fin, and compound eyes.
Diet: Shrimp are omnivores; they eat plants and small animals. The fancy pistol shrimp kills or stuns its prey by making a very loud sound with a huge claw with a movable, grasping appendage.
Life Cycle: Female shrimp lay over a thousand eggs that are attached to its floating legs. Shrimp appear as tiny, floating organisms that make up zooplankton. After growing, they sink to the bottom where they will live. As shrimp grows, they often molt (losing their old shell and growing a new one).