Image of stout coastal shrimp

Description:

This individual shows another color phase. This shrimp has a very strange history and shows that this species is capable of a stygian lifestyle. The shrimp was found living at the bottom of the Rosario Beach Marine Lab seawater reservoir when it was opened for inspection in June 2012. The seawater pumps had been shut off since August 2011. This shrimp and a number of others in the tank must have been sucked through the intake filter screens as larvae in August 2011 at the latest. They would have had to have grown to full size in the underground seawater reservoir through the 10 winter months of 2011-2012, in total darkness and in uncirculated seawater. Presumably they ate debris off the bottom of the tank. The light for this photo is likely some of the first light this shrimp has ever seen. Carapace length for this individual is about 9 mm and total length is 3.5 cm. Photo by Dave Cowles, June 2012