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Ombrastacoides parvicaudatus Hansen & Richardson, 2006:754

Short-tailed rain crayfish

 

 

Taxonomy & Nomenclature

Synonym/s: LMT Hansen & Richardson 1999a: 211, 1999b: 856-859; Ombrastacoides parvicaudatus Hansen, 2001:5.81 (MS)

 

Conservation Status

Last record: 3 May 1988 (Hansen, 2001); 3 June 1988 (Hansen & Richardson, 2006)

Rediscovered in November 2020

 

The impact of Hydro-lakes in Tasmania

The Short-tailed rain crayfish is one of several species that are or were thought to have gone extinct due to the inundation of an area for hydro-electricity, along with the Lake Pedder earthworm (still considered extinct), Lake Pedder planarian (subsequently rediscovered), McCubbins caddisfly (subsequently rediscovered) and Lake Pedder caddisfly (subsequently rediscovered):

"extremely restricted distribution in the King River valley around the region now inundated by Lake Burbury, a hydro-electric lake, and may well be extinct as a result of this inundation)" (Hansen, 2001:)

"One species, Ombrastacoides parvicaudatus, may now be extinct owing to flooding by the King River hydro-electric scheme (Lake Burbury); the only specimens of this species are in the University of Tasmania Zoology collection and no specimens have been collected since the formation of the lake, despite at least two searches around the southern and western shores." (Hansen & Richardson, 2006:717)

The Short-tailed crayfish was then rediscovered as part of a Hydro Tasmania environmental survey in November 2020.

 

Distribution

King River valley (now in creeks running into Lake Burbury), Tasmania, Australia

 

Biology & Ecology

A burrowing species

 

Hypodigm

See (Hansen, 2001; Hansen & Richardson, 2006)

 

Media

 

 

References

Original scientific description:

Hansen, Brita and Richardson, A. M. M. (2006). A revision of the Tasmanian endemic freshwater crayfish genus Parastacoides (Crustacea:Decapoda:Parastacidae). Invertebrate Systematics 20: 713-769.

 

Other references:

Hansen, Brita. (2001). Systematics and Phylogeny of the Tasmanian freshwater crayfish genus Parastacoides (Decapoda: Parastacidae). PhD thesis, University of Tasmania.

Hansen, B., and Richardson, A. M. M. (1999a). Interpreting the geographic range, habitat and evolution of the Tasmanian freshwater crayfish genus Parastacoides from a museum collection. In ‘The Other 99% - the Conservation and Biodiversity of Invertebrates’. (Eds W. Ponder and D. Lunney.) pp. 210-218. Transactions of the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales. (Surrey Beatty & Sons: Chipping Norton, Australia.).

Hansen, Brita and Richardson, A. M. M. (1999b). A preliminary inquiry into the biogeography of the Tasmanian endemic freshwater crayfish genus Parastacoides Clark (Decapoda: Parastacidae). Freshwater Crayfish 12: 854-861.

Holmes, Branden. (2021). What's Lost and What Remains: The Sixth Extinction in 100 Accounts (eBook). Self published.

https://www.hydro.com.au/docs/default-source/environment-page/king-and-yolande-sustainability-review/biodiversity-factsheet.pdf?sfvrsn=35be9528_2

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-01-21/short-tailed-rain-crayfish-found-in-remote-west-tasmania/13078614

 

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