Austrogammarus australis
Encyclopedia
Austrogammarus australis, also known as the "Dandenong amphipod" is a species of amphipod
crustacean
in family Paramelitidae
. It is endemic to Australia
and until recently thought to be extinct
, but surveys conducted in the Dandenong Ranges
have revealed small populations. Recent works have been undertaken to improve habitat quality and extend the range of the invertebrate.
Found in the same ecological niche
as similar amphipod species, the distinctive "sideways" swimming style and somewhat "hairy" appearance of the amphipod differentiate it. Found in leaf litter at the beginning of small creeks, in at least canopy 75% shade over the water, the species belongs to the shredder feeding guild and occupies the area accordingly, feeding mostly on native detritus and allocthonous materials.
The species' status under the IUCN Red List
criteria has not been updated since its rediscovery, and it is still listed as "extinct".
Amphipoda
Amphipoda is an order of malacostracan crustaceans with no carapace and generally with laterally compressed bodies. The name amphipoda means "different-footed", and refers to the different forms of appendages, unlike isopods, where all the legs are alike. Of the 7,000 species, 5,500 are classified...
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 family Paramelitidae
Paramelitidae
Paramelitidae is a family of amphipods, containing the following genera:*Antipodeus Williams & Barnard, 1988*Aquadulcaris Stewart & Griffiths, 1995*Austrocrangonyx Barnard & Barnard, 1983*Austrogammarus Barnard & Karaman, 1983...
. It is endemic to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and until recently thought to be extinct
Extinction
In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or of a group of organisms , normally a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost before this point...
, but surveys conducted in the Dandenong Ranges
Dandenong Ranges
The Dandenong Ranges are a set of low mountain ranges, rising to 633 metres at Mount Dandenong, approximately 35 km east of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...
have revealed small populations. Recent works have been undertaken to improve habitat quality and extend the range of the invertebrate.
Found in the same ecological niche
Ecological niche
In ecology, a niche is a term describing the relational position of a species or population in its ecosystem to each other; e.g. a dolphin could potentially be in another ecological niche from one that travels in a different pod if the members of these pods utilize significantly different food...
as similar amphipod species, the distinctive "sideways" swimming style and somewhat "hairy" appearance of the amphipod differentiate it. Found in leaf litter at the beginning of small creeks, in at least canopy 75% shade over the water, the species belongs to the shredder feeding guild and occupies the area accordingly, feeding mostly on native detritus and allocthonous materials.
The species' status under 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...
criteria has not been updated since its rediscovery, and it is still listed as "extinct".