Phronima
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P. atlantica |
Phronima, the pram bug amphipod, is a small, translucent deep sea hyperiid amphipod of the family Phronimidae. It resembles a shrimp with a head, eyes, jaws and clawed arms. Phronima are only seen in the wild at great depths, usually by submarine crews, and are usually only about 2.5 cm (1 inch) long. Phronima are carnivorous; they eat small plankton.
P. sedentaria often uses dead salps for housing.
It was claimed on the BBC's The Blue Planet that Phronima served as an inspiration for the design of the Xenomorphs of the Alien film series[1] although there seems to be little evidence to support this claim - the original Xenomorph design was based on a previous painting by Giger, Necronom IV, that bears little resemblance to Phronima.
