The little beach hopper that could | rant & reason
Editor's Note: This article summarizes research on the small crustacean Parhyale hawaiensis, a great deal of which has been led by MBL Director Nipam Patel, a pioneer in establishing Parhyale as a research organism.
Pop down to the beach, pick up a handful of seaweed and you’re likely to be greeted by dozens of little crustaceans exploding out from underneath, frantically trying hop away for the nearest bit of cover. You probably never gave them much attention because you were busy hunting for crabs or just hoping to fling some seaweed at a sibling. And that’s completely fair as they’re far from the most attractive critters on the shore.
But if you’d looked a little closer, you’d find that those little crustaceans were beach hoppers, also know as sand fleas, which, let’s be honest, doesn’t help win them any additional popularity. These beach hoppers are a group of crustaceans we call amphipods. And one in particular, Parhyale hawaiensis, inadvertently became a bit of a biology celeb.