Though Bryocamptus minutus is a relatively rare species in Norway. However, it is found in all geographical regions, except from the Svalbard archipelago.

Key characteristics

Bryocamptus minutus has a rather slender and elongated body. Both the exopod and endopod in the first three legs have three segments, while in the fourth leg the exopod is 3-segmented and the endopod is 2-segmented. In the first leg, the endopod is slightly longer than the exopod. Its rostrum is small. The operculum has 7–2 large bifid spines and the caudal ramus is longer than wide with terminal setae’s that seem to protrude from the middle of the underside. The antennule consists of eight segments.

Female: Length 0.50–0.70 mm

Male: Length 0.40–0.55 mm

Ecology and distribution

Though B. minutus is a relatively rare species in Norway, it is found in all geographical regions, except from the Svalbard archipelago. It is a cosmopolitan species with a wide ecological plasticity, found in both large and small waterbodies (eutrophic, oligotrophic and dystrophic); most frequently among littoral vegetation and in submerged mosses on marshes, but also in stony shores. We may also find it in the profondal zone of lakes as well as in small ponds. Bryocamptus minutus is a rather warm water, oligosaprobic species, and is found from sea-level and up to subalpine/alpine regions.