Ostracods, a group of small crustaceans popularly known as 'seed shrimps', are often encountered by freshwater ecologists equipped either with a grab sampler or a plankton net. The tendency of many aquatic ecologists is to ignore these organisms or to group them under the blanket term 'ostracods'. Reliable identification keys to the freshwater ostracods of the Oriental Region are still lacking.
In response to this lack, An Illustrated Key to the Freshwater Ostracod Genera of the Oriental Region presents a generic identification key for the freshwater ostracods of the Oriental Region. Simple and obvious characters are used to identify 33 freshwater ostracod genera, many of them widely distributed in other regions. Apart from the key characters used, the authors have also illustrated other morphological features of each genus so that the user can further confirm his generic determination. The authors have provided a complete and up-to-date bibliography for the freshwater ostracods of the Oriental region. For species identity users are advised to compare their specimens with descriptions and illustrations of individual species within the appropriate genus.