Gammarus acherondytes

Last updated

Gammarus acherondytes
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Class: Malacostraca
Superorder: Peracarida
Order: Amphipoda
Family: Gammaridae
Genus: Gammarus
Species:
G. acherondytes
Binomial name
Gammarus acherondytes
Hubricht & Mackin, 1940
Synonyms

Gammarus acheronytes (orthographic error)

Gammarus acherondytes, the Illinois cave amphipod, is a species of crustacean in the family Gammaridae. The crustacean is endemic to the Illinois Sinkhole Plain of Monroe County and St. Clair County, in southwestern Illinois, including Illinois Caverns State Natural Area. [1] [2]

Contents

Historically Gammarus acherondytes was known from six caves, but in a survey in 1995 the species was found at only three of the sites, with one further site inaccessible. This species occurs only in underground streams. It was first collected in 1938 and described as a new species in 1940. It has only been found in six cave streams, all lie within a 10-mile radius circle around Waterloo, Illinois, making this a very localized species. However, there is no evidence that these cave streams are currently interconnected. The main threat to the species is groundwater contamination. [1] [2]

Description

Gammarus acherondytes is a rather small crustacean with its most notable features being the light gray-blue color of its exoskeleton, and rather small eyes and no sensory organs on its second antenna. [3]

Range and habitat

Gammarus acherondytes is native to underground streams and waterways in Illinois. It has been recorded from five cave streams located in the Monroe and St.Clair counties. Fogelpole Cave, Illinois Caverns, Krueger-Dry Run Cave, Madonnaville Cave, and Pautler Cave in Monroe County. Along with Stemler Cave in St. Clair County. With Pautler Cave being closed down by the landowner. [4] The largest population is recorded in the Illinois Caverns while no specimens were collected in Madonnaville and Stemler Cave since 1986 and 1965 respectfully. Genetic evidence implies that none of these cave systems are interconnected due to the genomic pool of the populations being quite varied. [5]

Threats and conservation efforts

Human pollution and runoff is the main threat to the species. With chemical pollution being the major threat to quality of water where they reside. Although research shows that Gammarus acherondytes breed all year-round. With juveniles constituting more than 50% of the population and strongly influence population density. Giving reason to believe that if they are allowed to remain undisturbed the population could feasibly bounce back to pre-pollutant levels. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amphipoda</span> Order of malacostracan crustaceans

Amphipoda is an order of malacostracan crustaceans with no carapace and generally with laterally compressed bodies. Amphipods range in size from 1 to 340 millimetres and are mostly detritivores or scavengers. There are more than 9,900 amphipod species so far described. They are mostly marine animals, but are found in almost all aquatic environments. Some 1,900 species live in fresh water, and the order also includes the terrestrial sandhoppers such as Talitrus saltator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Roscoe Rede Stebbing</span> British zoologist

The Reverend Thomas Roscoe Rede Stebbing was a British zoologist, who described himself as "a serf to natural history, principally employed about Crustacea". Educated in London and Oxford, he only took to natural history in his thirties, having worked as a teacher until then. Although an ordained Anglican priest, Stebbing promoted Darwinism in a number of popular works, and was banned from preaching as a result. His scientific works mostly concerned crustaceans, especially the Amphipoda and Isopoda, the most notable being his work on the amphipods of the Challenger expedition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Illinois Caverns State Natural Area</span> State park in Illinois, USA

Illinois Caverns is a state natural area in the New Design Precinct of Monroe County, Illinois. It features Illinois Caverns which is alternatively known as Mammoth Cave of Illinois. Illinois Caverns is the second-largest cave in Illinois and has more than 9.6 km of passages. The cave has a constant temperature of 58 °F (14 °C), and portions flood during wet weather. Passages can be 20 feet (6.1 m) high and just as wide. It is located off Illinois Route 3, south of Waterloo, near the unincorporated community of Burksville.

Chiltonia is a genus of amphipod crustaceans endemic to New Zealand. Four species are known, three of which live in fresh waters. They were first discovered by Charles Chilton in 1898 and the genus Chiltonia was erected the following year by T. R. R. Stebbing in Chilton's honour.

Phreatogammarus is a genus of amphipod crustaceans that are endemic to New Zealand. It is the only genus in the family Phreatogammaridae, and contains four species, three of which were described by Charles Chilton.

<i>Gammarus pulex</i> Species of crustacean

Gammarus pulex is a species of amphipod crustacean found in fresh water across much of Europe. It is a greyish animal, growing to 21 mm (0.83 in) long.

<i>Gammarus roeseli</i> Species of crustacean

Gammarus roeseli is a species of freshwater amphipod native to Europe.

<i>Gammarus</i> Genus of crustaceans

Gammarus is an amphipod crustacean genus in the family Gammaridae. It contains more than 200 described species, making it one of the most species-rich genera of crustaceans. Different species have different optimal conditions, particularly in terms of salinity, and different tolerances; Gammarus pulex, for instance, is a purely freshwater species, while Gammarus locusta is estuarine, only living where the salinity is greater than 25‰.

<i>Gammarus desperatus</i> Species of crustacean

Gammarus desperatus, commonly known as Noel's Amphipod, is a species of small, amphipod crustacean in the family Gammaridae.

Gammarus hyalelloides is a species of amphipod crustacean in the family Gammaridae. It is endemic to four springs in Jeff Davis County and Reeves County, Texas, and is listed as a vulnerable species on the IUCN Red List.

<i>Lirceus</i> Genus of crustaceans

Lirceus is a genus of isopod crustaceans in the family Asellidae that live in southern Canada and the eastern United States as far west as the Great Plains. Of the 15 species in the genus, two are listed as either endangered (EN) or vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List.

<i>Stygobromus</i> Genus of crustaceans

Stygobromus is a genus of amphipod crustaceans that live in subterranean habitats. The majority of the listed species are endemic to North America, a smaller number of species are also known from Eurasia. Most of the North American species live in areas which were not covered by the Laurentide Ice Sheet, although a few species seem to have survived under the ice. A number of species are on the IUCN Red List as endangered species (EN) or vulnerable species (VU); one species, S. lucifugus, is extinct.

Leslie Hubricht was an American biologist and malacologist.

<i>Dikerogammarus villosus</i> Species of crustacean

Dikerogammarus villosus, also known as the killer shrimp, is a species of amphipod crustacean native to the Ponto-Caspian region of eastern Europe, but which has become invasive across the western part of the continent. In the areas it has invaded, it lives in a wide range of habitats and will prey on many other animals. It is fast-growing, reaching sexual maturity in 4–8 weeks. As it has moved through Europe, it threatens other species and has already displaced both native amphipods and previous invaders.

<i>Gammarus lacustris</i> Species of crustacean

Gammarus lacustris is an aquatic amphipod.

<i>Caprella mutica</i> Species of skeleton shrimp

Caprella mutica, commonly known as the Japanese skeleton shrimp, is a species of skeleton shrimp. They are relatively large caprellids, reaching a maximum length of 50 mm (2.0 in). They are sexually dimorphic, with the males usually being much larger than the females. They are characterized by their "hairy" first and second thoracic segments and the rows of spines on their bodies. Body color ranges from green to red to blue, depending on the environment. They are omnivorous highly adaptable opportunistic feeders. In turn, they provide a valuable food source for fish, crabs, and other larger predators. They are usually found in dense colonies attached to submerged man-made structures, floating seaweed, and other organisms.

Iphigenellidae is a freshwater family of amphipods in the superfamily Gammaroidea. It is found in the Ponto-Caspian region, which encompasses the Black, Azov, and Caspian Seas.

<i>Gammarus fossarum</i>

Gammarus fossarum is a species complex of freshwater amphipod crustacean native to Europe. They are abundant members of the macroinvertebrate community, and also used as model organisms for ecotoxicology.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Crandall, K.; et al. (Inland Water Crustacean Specialist Group) (2002). "Gammarus acherondytes". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2002: e.T40743A10361653. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2002.RLTS.T40743A10361653.en . Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Illinois Cave Amphipod, Gammarus acherondytes" (PDF). United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  3. Webb, Donald W. (1995). "STATUS REPORT ON THE CAVE AMPHIPOD GAMMARUS ACHERONDYTES HUBRICHT AND MACKIN (CRUSTACEA: AMPHIPODA) IN ILLINOIS" (PDF). Illinois Natural History Survey. 22: 1–21 via Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship.
  4. Webb, Donald; Page, Lawrence; Taylor, Steven J.; Krejca, Jean K. (December 1998). "The Current Status and Habitats of the Illinois Cave Amphipod, Gammarus Acherondytes Hubrichts and Mackin (Crustacea: Amphipoda)". Journal of Cave and Karst Studies the National Speleological Society Bulletin. 60: 172–178.
  5. Venarsky, M. P.; Anderson, F. E.; Wilhelm, F. M. (2008-04-05). "Population genetic study of the U.S. federally listed Illinois cave amphipod, Gammarus acherondytes". Conservation Genetics. 10 (4): 915–921. doi:10.1007/s10592-008-9579-0. ISSN   1566-0621.
  6. Venarsky, Michael P.; Wilhelm, Frank M.; Anderson, Frank E. (2007-01-01). "Conservation Strategies Supported by Non-Lethal Life History Sampling of the U.S. Federally Listed Illinois Cave Amphipod, Gammarus Acherondytes". Journal of Crustacean Biology. 27 (2): 202–211. doi: 10.1651/s-2782.1 . ISSN   0278-0372.