The Decapoda or decapods are an order of crustaceans within the class Malacostraca, including many familiar groups, such as crayfish, crabs, lobsters, prawns, and shrimp. Most decapods are scavengers. The order is estimated to contain nearly 15,000 species in around 2,700 genera, with around 3,300 fossil species.

How many legs does a decapod have?

Five pairs of appendages are considered as the 10 legs (pereiopods), hence the name Decapoda). Front 3 pairs of appendages function as mouthparts (maxillipeds).

What is the meaning of the word decapod?

1 : any of an order (Decapoda) of crustaceans (such as shrimp, lobsters, and crabs) with five pairs of thoracic appendages one or more of which are modified into pincers, with stalked eyes, and with the head and thorax fused into a cephalothorax and covered by a carapace.