Dikerogammarus haemobaphes is a species of freshwater gammarid crustacean. These gammarids are commonly known as demon shrimp, likely because they are an extremely successful invasive species.
| Dikerogammarus haemobaphes | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Clade: | Pancrustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Amphipoda |
| Family: | Gammaridae |
| Genus: | Dikerogammarus |
| Species: | D. haemobaphes |
| Binomial name | |
| Dikerogammarus haemobaphes (Eichwald, 1841) | |
Native to the Ponto Caspian basin, Dikerogammarus haemobaphes expanded their range in 1955.[1] This expansion began in Lake Balaton, Hungary and then spread into certain rivers and lakes in Austria, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom.[1] These crustaceans were probably able to broaden their range due to the interconnection of waterways in Europe and the use of transportation vectors such as boats and ships.[2]
Identification
editDikerogammarus haemobaphes have a semi-transparent, white body consisting of a head, thorax, and abdomen.[2] Their body consists of seven segments, each with a pair of pereopods (walking legs). These shrimp are different from other gammarid species as their peduncle, flagellum of antennae, and gnathopods have short bristles rather than long ones.[2] Males average 16 mm in length, but can grow up to 21 mm. Females range between 7-15 mm long.[3]
Habitat preferences
editDikerogammarus haemobaphes have a wide salinity tolerance and are able to live in fresh and brackish water.[4] They are also considered a eurythermal species, because they can tolerate a wide range of thermal temperatures.[4]
Demon shrimp feed on sediments, detritus, unicellular and filamentous algae, and small crustaceans.[1] These shrimp prefer living in coarse-grained cobble substrates, but can be found in all types of substrate.[5] Demon shrimp are also commonly found in the same environment as Dreissena polymorpha, or zebra mussels.[1] It has been found that Dikerogammarus haemobaphes prefer living on top of zebra mussel shells rather than other substrate types.[1]
Invasiveness
edit
The invasion of Dikerogammarus haemobaphes has been shown to harm their new habitat. Demon shrimp are highly successful invaders due to their rapid growth rates and early maturation.[5] They also have a much higher fecundity than native gammarid species, enabling them to increase their population quickly.[5] Their wide salinity tolerance, sediment preferences, and thermal tolerance also makes them able to successfully invade foreign ecosystems.
Amphipods play a major role in the energy flow within their environment due to their shredding and decomposition activities.[5] Dikerogammarus haemobaphes has been reported to have lower detrital processing efficiency than native amphipod shrimp such as Gammarus pulex,[5] so that a shift in the dominant amphipod species would lead to slower decomposition rates within the environment.[5] Consequently if the demon shrimp take over a particular environment, the energy flow would be altered, causing deleterious effects on that particular niche. Since leaf shredding provides fresh and brackish water ecosystems with carbon and organic matter, a decrease in shredding activities would cause these levels to drop.[6]
In addition to feeding on detritus, Demon shrimp also prey on native shrimp and insect species,[7] having a significant impact on community dynamics, disrupting local food chains, and altering ecosystem function.[5] The demon shrimp's omnivorous diet provides it with more available food sources, giving it an advantage over native gammarid species.[5] The wide habitat breadth, carnivorous activities, high fecundity, and rapid growth of Dikerogammarus haemobaphes makes this species an extremely successful invader.
References
edit- 1 2 3 4 5 US Fish and Wildlife Services (July 6, 2018). Demon Shrimp (Dikerogammarus haemobaphes) (PDF) (Report). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 February 2022.
- 1 2 3 Baker, E (January 28, 2015). "Dikerogammarus haemobaphes (Eichwald, 1841)". NOAA Great Lakes Aquatic Nonindigenous Species Information System (GLANSIS).
- ↑ Schram, Frederick R.; Klein, Jan Carel von Vaupel (1999). Crustaceans and the Biodiversity Crisis: Proceedings of the Fourth International Crustacean Congress, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, July 20-24, 1998. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-11387-9.
- 1 2 Devin, S (April 21, 2006). "Biological and ecological characteristics of invasive species: a gammarid study". Biological Invasions. 9: 13–24. doi:10.1007/s10530-006-9001-0. S2CID 22417055.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Clinton, K (February 27, 2018). "Substrate preferences of coexisting invasive amphipods, Dikerogammarus villosus and Dikerogammarus haemobaphes, under field and laboratory conditions". Biological Invasions. 20 (8): 2187–2196. doi:10.1007/s10530-018-1695-2.
- ↑ Louhi, P (June 16, 2016). "Sediment addition reduces the importance of predation on ecosystem functions in experimental stream channels". Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. 74: 32–40. doi:10.1139/cjfas-2015-0530.
- ↑ "Watch out for the Demon Shrimp on loose in river". Environment Agency. 30 December 2014 – via Lancaster Guardian.