Walking in Ajloun Nature Reserve, Jordan, my partner and I peered into the “wine press” wells that were carved into stone ~1800 years ago by the Romans. These wells had filled partway with rainwater and were full of freshwater invertebrates. The two macro videos are of Fairy Shrimp (Anostraca) that were ~2″ (red one) and ~3.5″ (green one) long. The initial shot of the pool shows many Cladocera also. With no nearby water bodies and the likelihood that these pools completely dry out in the summer, we were quite interested in them. Knowing now that they are fairy shrimp, the habitat of vernal pools is a perfect match, as they are very drought tolerant in their “cyst” stage and are quick to mature. The park biologist had never seen them before.Thanks to a bunch of biologists for the ID (John Acorn, Mike Quinn, Jason Dombroskie, Marla Schwartzfeld, Boyd Mori…)! I think the large greenish one is a male Branchinecta sp. based on the shape of the “distal articles of the antennae”. (Music by: Relatively Clean Rivers – Journey Through The Valley Of O – 1975)
Video Rating: 5 / 5
