page_title: Carapace
section_title: Crustaceans
hierarchical_section_title: Carapace / Crustaceans
caption_attribution_description: English: The moulted carapace of a lady crab, Ovalipes ocellatus found in the beachdrift on the beach at Long Beach, Long Island, New York State, USA by the photographer in October 2008
context_page_description: A carapace is a dorsal section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the underside is called the plastron.
context_section_description: In crustaceans, the carapace functions as a protective cover over the cephalothorax. Where it projects forward beyond the eyes, this projection is called a rostrum. The carapace is calcified to varying degrees in different crustaceans.
  Zooplankton within the phylum Crustacea also have a carapace. These include Cladocera, ostracods, and isopods, but isopods only have a developed "cephalic shield" carapace covering the head.
caption: The molted carapace of a lady crab from Long Beach, New York.
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