Noel's Amphipod facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Noel's Amphipod
G. desperatus in Chaves County, New Mexico, United States
Conservation status
Critically Endangered (IUCN 2.3)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Crustacea
Class:	Malacostraca
Superorder:	Peracarida
Order:	Amphipoda
Family:	Gammaridae
Genus:	Gammarus
Species:	G. desperatus
Binomial name
Gammarus desperatus Cole, 1981
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The Gammarus desperatus, also known as Noel's Amphipod, is a tiny crustacean. It belongs to a group called amphipods and is part of the Gammaridae family.

Noel's Amphipod used to live in three different spots in New Mexico. Sadly, it has now disappeared from two of those places. Today, Noel's Amphipod can only be found in the Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge. Because its population is so small, it is listed as critically endangered by the IUCN Red List. It is also protected as an endangered species under the United States Endangered Species Act.

What Noel's Amphipod Looks Like

Noel's Amphipods are small water creatures. They are invertebrates, meaning they don't have a backbone. These amphipods are usually a brownish-green color. They have kidney-shaped eyes and red stripes on their body segments.

They have two sets of antennae. These antennae are covered in tiny, hair-like structures called setae. Noel's Amphipod also has 5 to 7 spines near its head. Male amphipods are a bit larger than females. They can grow from about 8.5 to 14.8 millimeters long.

Life Cycle and Reproduction

Noel's Amphipods live for about one year. Because their life is short, they grow very quickly. They become ready to have babies, or reach sexual maturity, in about two months. They usually breed from February to October, depending on how warm the water is.

When a male and female amphipod get ready to mate, the male holds onto the female. He uses his gnathopods (special claws) to guard her for up to seven days. This is called mate-guarding. He does this to keep other males away. During this time, the pair keeps eating and swimming.

The female then sheds her outer skin, a process called molting. Soon after molting, she releases her eggs into a special pouch called a marsupium. The male then fertilizes the eggs. The female keeps the eggs in her pouch until the young hatch. She releases the baby amphipods after a few hours or days. A female Noel's Amphipod can have a brood of 15 to 50 young.

How Noel's Amphipod Lives

What They Eat

Noel's Amphipods are omnivores. This means they eat both plants and animals. They feed on algae, plants that grow underwater, and decaying bits of matter. They often eat biofilms. Biofilms are slimy layers that grow on underwater plants. These layers are made of algae, diatoms, bacteria, and fungi. Tiny living things like algae and bacteria are very important food for young amphipods.

How They Behave

Noel's Amphipods show mate-guarding behavior. The male protects the female from other males. This ensures he is the one to fertilize her eggs. This species is mostly active at night. They are sensitive to light, so they prefer to move around when it's dark.

Where They Live

These amphipods need very specific places to live. They require clean, shallow, cool, and constantly flowing water. This water must also have plenty of oxygen. They can be found in streams, ponds, ditches, sloughs, and springs.

Noel's Amphipods are also very sensitive to changes in the water's pH level. They need high levels of calcium to survive. You can often find them hiding under stones or among underwater plants. They are extremely sensitive to dirty water. They also cannot survive if their habitat dries up, if the water stops flowing, or if too much mud builds up. In short, they are very sensitive to any damage to their home.

Where They Are Found

Noel's Amphipod used to live in three places in New Mexico. But it has disappeared from two of those sites. Now, Noel's Amphipod only lives within the Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge. Specifically, they are found at the Sago Spring Wetland Complex, Bitter Creek, and along the western edge of Unit 6.

Protecting Noel's Amphipod

How Many Are Left

In the past, there were huge numbers of these amphipods. Sometimes, more than 10,000 could be found in just one square meter! In 1954, Noel's Amphipod was the most common large invertebrate at Lander Springbrook. There were between 2,338 and 10,416 per square meter.

By 1995 and 1996, at Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge, the numbers varied. At Bitter Creek, there were 64 to 8,768 per square meter. At Sago Spring Wetland Complex, there were 20 to 575 per square meter. In 1999, at Unit 6, there were 344 per square meter. These numbers show that while they can still be dense in some spots, their overall population has shrunk.

What Harms Them

One of the biggest dangers to Noel's Amphipod is less water in their habitat. This happens because of pumping water from underground and periods of drought. Water pollution also hurts these amphipods.

Other problems include not enough rules to protect them. They also have a small living area, can't move far, and their habitat is broken up. Climate change is another threat.

Why They Are Endangered

Noel's Amphipod was officially listed as an endangered species on August 9, 2005. This was because its population was very small. It seemed to only exist in the Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico.

Plans to Help Them

In 2020, experts checked on four endangered species in the Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge, including Noel's Amphipod. This was part of a "five-year review." A similar review happened in 2010. In 2011, a special area of 70.2 acres was set aside as "Critical Habitat" for Noel's Amphipod.

A plan to help these four invertebrate species recover was finished in October 2019. This plan has four main goals:

• Make sure each species can survive for a long time.
• Protect the amount of water they need.
• Keep the water clean.
• Protect and fix their homes.

The review found that not much new research had been done on the amphipod itself. However, it stressed how important it is to follow the recovery plan from 2019.

Recovery Plan

The recovery plan focuses on keeping, fixing, and managing the water homes of Noel's Amphipod. This will help their populations grow stronger. The plan aims to protect their numbers by making sure they have good water and by protecting their land. It also includes controlling invasive species that might harm them.

It's important to work with other groups that care about nature. This helps reach the goals of the five-year review. It also helps make sure communities still have enough water for themselves. This is done by involving local people and showing them how important the Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge and its amazing variety of life are.

To save Noel's Amphipods, we need to protect them and their homes. This will help their population become stable enough to be removed from the endangered species list. This can happen if we meet these needs:

• Ensure the species can survive long-term with the right number, size, and spread of populations.
• Protect the amount and quality of their water.
• Reduce threats to the species and its home. This will help Noel's Amphipods grow their numbers again.

It would also be helpful to do more research. This would help us understand their patterns and genetic diversity better. Then, we could find new places to introduce the species. It is very important to create long-term plans and educational programs. These will help protect Noel's Amphipod. By teaching the local community about what these creatures need and why they are important, we can protect them even better.