Photo by: USGS
Riverside Fairy Shrimp
Streptocephalus woottoni
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Endangered
(fws.gov)
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U.S. Endangered Species Act
(fws.gov)
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These shrimp are affected by habitat loss and other indirect effects as a result of development and fragmentation of their habitat, non-native plants, climate change, and fires (fws.gov).
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Found in California counties including Ventura, Riverside, Orange, and San Diego (fws.gov).
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Riverside fairy shrimp live in vernal pools like other fairy shrimp species and other ephemeral pools that lack vegetation and last for a short time during the year. Their diet includes algae, bacteria, protozoa, and other materials like detritus in the ephemeral waters. These shrimp mature and reproduce within the 7-8 weeks that water exists in these seasonal pools. Females carry the eggs in a ventral brood sac that sink to the bottom of the pools when the female dies or are dropped by the female (fws.gov).
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There is a lack of water quality testing for this specific species. While other fairy shrimp species have had toxicity tests for their waters, there is a lack thereof for riverside fairy shrimp. This would be beneficial to see what these shrimp are sensitive to and devise plans to clean up their environment.
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Riverside fairy shrimp are very small, ranging from 0.5-1 inch, with females usually being slightly smaller than males. Their frontal appendage is cylindrical and has a bibbed tip. They also tend to have an overall rosy body color (biodiversity.org). These shrimp are distinguished from other very similar fairy shrimp by the presence of a second pair of antennae in males (fws.gov).
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