The vernal pool fairy shrimp, Branchinecta lynchi, is a species of freshwater

Freshwater

Fresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth's surface in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams. Fresh water is generally characterized by having low concentrations of dissolved salts and...

 crustacean

Crustacean

Crustaceans form a very large group of arthropods, usually treated as a subphylum, which includes such familiar animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles. The 50,000 described species range in size from Stygotantulus stocki at , to the Japanese spider crab with a leg span...

 in the family Branchinectidae

Branchinectidae

Branchinectidae is a family in the order Anostraca , containing two genera – Branchinecta and Archaebranchinecta. The majority of the species are in the genus Branchinecta, with only Archaebranchinecta pollicifera and the fossil Archaebranchinecta barstowensis in the second genus....

. It is endemic to the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

s of Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

 and California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, living in vernal pool

Vernal pool

Vernal pools, also called vernal ponds or ephemeral pools, are temporary pools of water. They are usually devoid of fish, and thus allow the safe development of natal amphibian and insect species...

s. They range in size from 0.43 to 0.98 in (10.9 to 24.9 mm) long. Vernal pool fairy shrimp are listed as a vulnerable species

Vulnerable species

On 30 January 2010, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species identified 9694 Vulnerable species, subspecies and varieties, stocks and sub-populations.-References:...

 on the IUCN Red List

IUCN Red List

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , founded in 1963, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world's main authority on the conservation status of species...

.

Description

Vernal pool fairy shrimp are usually translucent, however some have been observed to be white or orange.

They feature stalked compound eyes, no carapace

Carapace

A carapace is a dorsal section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the underside is called the plastron.-Crustaceans:In crustaceans, the...

, and eleven pairs of legs. The fairy shrimp swim by moving their legs from front to back in a wave-like motion. They eat algae

Algae

Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many...

, bacteria

Bacteria

Bacteria are a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria have a wide range of shapes, ranging from spheres to rods and spirals...

, protozoa

Protozoa

Protozoa are a diverse group of single-cells eukaryotic organisms, many of which are motile. Throughout history, protozoa have been defined as single-cell protists with animal-like behavior, e.g., movement...

, rotifer

Rotifer

The rotifers make up a phylum of microscopic and near-microscopic pseudocoelomate animals. They were first described by Rev. John Harris in 1696, and other forms were described by Anton van Leeuwenhoek in 1703...

s, and detritus

Detritus

Detritus is a biological term used to describe dead or waste organic material.Detritus may also refer to:* Detritus , a geological term used to describe the particles of rock produced by weathering...

, and are eaten by bird

Bird

Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...

s and other animals, notably by the tadpole

Tadpole

A tadpole or polliwog is the wholly aquatic larval stage in the life cycle of an amphibian, particularly that of a frog or toad.- Appellation :...

s of spadefoot toads

American spadefoot toads

Scaphiopodidae is a family of American spadefoot toads. They are native to southern Canada and USA south to southern Mexico. Scaphiopodidae is a small family, comprising only seven species....

.

Vernal pool fairy shrimp have a lifetime of about two months. They are usually born around early January, and die around early March.

The female fairy shrimp lay drought

Drought

A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...

-resistant egg

Egg (biology)

An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...

s shortly before they die. The eggs sink to the bottom of the vernal pools, embedding into the soil when they dry. When the vernal pool refills the next winter, the eggs hatch, starting the process over.

Habitat

Vernal pool fairy shrimp have been found in vernal pools in southern Oregon

Southern Oregon

Southern Oregon is a region of the U.S. state of Oregon south of Lane County and generally west of the Cascade Range, excluding the southern Oregon Coast. Counties include Douglas, Jackson, Klamath, and Josephine. It includes the Southern Oregon American Viticultural Area, which consists of the...

, and parts of California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. They can survive if the pool's temperature is between 43 °F (6.1 °C) and 68 °F (20 °C). In Oregon, they have been discovered in the Agate Desert

Agate Desert

The Agate Desert is a prairie located Jackson County, Oregon, United States, in the area of White City. Much of the World War II army training base Camp White was built in the Agate Desert...

, around Agate Lake

Agate Lake

Agate Lake is a reservoir located above sea level in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. It is northeast of Medford,just north of Roxy Ann Peak...

, and on the Upper and Lower Table Rock

Upper and Lower Table Rock

Upper Table Rock and Lower Table Rock are two prominent volcanic plateaus located just north of the Rogue River in Jackson County, Oregon. Created by an andesitic lava flow approximately seven million years ago and shaped by erosion, they now stand about above the surrounding valley...

s.
In California, fairy shrimp have been found in 32 locations in the Central Valley from Shasta County

Shasta County, California

Shasta County is a county located in the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The county occupies the northern reaches of the Sacramento Valley, with portions extending into the southern reaches of the Cascade Range. As of the 2010 census, the population was 177,223, up from 163,256...

 to Tulare County

Tulare County, California

Tulare County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, south of Fresno. Sequoia National Park is located in the county, as are part of Kings Canyon National Park, in its northeast corner , and part of Mount Whitney, on its eastern border...

, and in the Coast Range from Solano County

Solano County, California

Solano County is a county located in Bay-Delta region of the U.S. state of California, about halfway between San Francisco and Sacramento and is one of the nine San Francisco Bay Area counties. The county's population was reported by the U.S. Census to be 413,344 in 2010...

 to San Benito County

San Benito County, California

San Benito County is a county located in the Coast Range Mountains of the U.S. state of California, south of San Jose. As of 2010 the population was 55,269. The county seat is Hollister, which includes nearly two-thirds of the county's population. El Camino Real passes through the county and...

. They have also been found near Soda Lake

Soda Lake (San Luis Obispo County)

Soda Lake is a shallow, ephemeral, alkali endorheic lake in the Carrizo Plain in southeastern San Luis Obispo County, California. The lake is located on the southwest side of the northern Carrizo Plain, 103 km east of San Luis Obispo. It can be reached by Soda Lake Road, which runs...

, Santa Barbara County

Santa Barbara County, California

Santa Barbara County is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, on the Pacific coast. As of 2010 the county had a population of 423,895. The county seat is Santa Barbara and the largest city is Santa Maria.-History:...

, the Santa Rosa Plateau

Santa Rosa Plateau

The Santa Rosa Plateau is an upland plateau and southeastern extension of the Santa Ana Mountains in Riverside County, southern California. It is bounded by the rapidly urbanizing Inland Empire cities of Murrieta to the northeast, and Temecula to the southeast.The Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological...

, and Riverside County

Riverside County, California

Riverside County is a county in the U.S. state of California. One of 58 California counties, it covers in the southern part of the state, and stretches from Orange County to the Colorado River, which forms the state border with Arizona. The county derives its name from the city of Riverside,...

.