Paralubbockia longipedia is a species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 of copepod

Copepod

Copepods are a group of small crustaceans found in the sea and nearly every freshwater habitat. Some species are planktonic , some are benthic , and some continental species may live in limno-terrestrial habitats and other wet terrestrial places, such as swamps, under leaf fall in wet forests,...

, and the only member of the family

Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...

 Paralubbockiidae. The family is characterised by the ventral position of the fifth legs, the possession of a separate maxillary palp, and the form of the endopods of the legs and antennae

Antenna (biology)

Antennae in biology have historically been paired appendages used for sensing in arthropods. More recently, the term has also been applied to cilium structures present in most cell types of eukaryotes....

. The closest relatives of Paralubbockia are the family Oncaeidae

Oncaeidae

Oncaeidae is a family of copepods, containing the following genera:*Archioncaea Böttger-Schnack & Huys, 1997*Conaea Giesbrecht, 1891*Epicalymma Heron, 1977*Monothula Böttger-Schnack & Huys, 2001*Oncaea Philippi, 1843...

. Initially placed among the Poecilostomatoida

Poecilostomatoida

Poecilostomatoida are an order of copepods previously included in the Cyclopoida.-Description:The classification of these copepods has been established on the basis of the structure of the mouth. In poecilostomatoids the mouth is represented by a transverse slit, partially covered by the...

, Paralubbockia is now considered part of the Cyclopoida

Cyclopoida

Cyclopoida is an order of small crustaceans from the subclass Copepoda. Like many other copepods, members of Cyclopoida are small, planktonic animals living both in the sea and in freshwater habitats. They are capable of rapid movement...

.