Syngastes

Syngastes is a genus of minute marine copepods in the order Harpacticoida and family Tegastidae. Like other tegastid copepods, Syngastes species have a laterally compressed body form (flattened side-to-side) adapted to clinging onto substrates in shallow marine habitats. They are often found in symbiotic or commensal association with other marine invertebrates (such as corals, bryozoans, mollusks, or polychaete worms). They were historically referred to as “parasitic” copepods, but like other tegastids, many Syngastes species occur as ecto‑associates of invertebrates; most associations are interpreted as commensal rather than parasitic (they typically do not harm their hosts). The genus was established in 1924 by Swiss zoologist Albert Monard to encompass several species formerly placed in the genus Tegastes.