Shchiten: they sleep for decades only to wake up in a puddle from a tractor (9 photos)

Summer is coming, but winter has been very snowy. This year there is a great chance to see a real miracle of the earth. These are shieldfish - ancient crustaceans that appear as unexpectedly as they disappear.





These animals refer us to something very ancient. The Earth was filled with such creatures many millions of years ago.

The unique feature of these small monsters is that they are the only larger (up to 12 cm) animal that lives almost exclusively in PUDDLES. Rivers - no. Lakes - no. Swamps - no! Only puddles. Only temporary microponds after heavy rainfall or snow melting.



A typical place where you can find shieldweed is a rut on a rural road, along which cars rarely pass.

Shields stubbornly avoid bodies of water where other living creatures are found. Fish, amphibians, etc. only reduce the chances of their appearance, but still sometimes shield bugs can be found in ordinary reservoirs, but this is rather an exception to the rule.





You might think that shieldfish are similar to horseshoe crabs, but these two orders of crustaceans are very far from each other.



Another very good place for shield hatching.

Their life cycle is even more amazing. Cysts (microscopic scale insect eggs) can lie in the ground in random places for decades. They are waiting for ideal conditions known only to them for awakening. Therefore, one year there are no scale insects at all, and in another they can suddenly appear in any puddle.



Shield eggs are the size of a grain of sand.

After hatching, the larvae develop at tremendous speed. From microscopic they turn into sexually mature individuals several centimeters long in just 2 weeks. All this time they filter organic matter. Almost anything suits them as food. From bugs and tadpoles to plant remains and pieces of debris in the water.



An inattentive and inexperienced person will most likely mistake the shieldfish for ordinary tadpoles. Look into the puddles more carefully, they have eyes! :D

Soon the shield bugs begin to multiply rapidly. At the moment, it is known that most shieldfish are girls, and they reproduce by parthenogenesis, that is, they produce their clones without the participation of males. But sometimes boys do appear in populations to introduce at least a little genetic diversity into the population.



Shields live all over the world except Antarctica. There are dozens of species.

And so, having laid their eggs in the ground, the shield bugs disappear as suddenly as they appeared. The puddle has most likely already dried up, the shieldfish have died, and their offspring will be carried away by the wind. Perhaps, in a few years or even decades, a new population will arise here in this old puddle, or somewhere else.



You can also take a closer look at the dried puddles. Sometimes you can find there a whole necropolis of shields that have completed their cycle.

If you happen to encounter a shieldfish this summer, you are very lucky. You are witnessing a real miracle of nature. They are not dangerous and cannot cause any harm to humans. All that remains is to contemplate and rejoice.

Tell us about your encounters with this mysterious creature!



Some people manage to keep shieldfish in aquariums. I heard that even kits with cysts for home breeding are sold.