Wildlife Wednesday - isopods / amphipods

I had a win, I think. I took photos on the river the other day of tiny holes in the sand and as I was down there taking the shot, I realised that there were 'bugs' running around too. I called them isopods, but I'm never confident with what I call things! So I Googled, and today I'm on a winner and doesn't that make me happy!

These were such tiny critters, maybe only the size of a pinhead. I noticed them only because of their movement. Picking them out in the photo took a bit of an effort too! And I haven't quite got them in focus either, but see how tiny they are, they make the sand grains look big!

You might remember the bugs from a huge media ruckus a couple of years ago after a person was 'attacked' by them. The Australian Museum blog has an article about Isopods that references the biting incidence. You can read it here.

Let me assure you, that even though I have these photos, and saw lots of the scurrying around on the sand, I left with all my skin intact! I might be too old and tough for these little mouth parts :)

EDITED: amphipods is what they are called in a beachcombing book I recently picked up!