E-Fauna Photo Gallery
Gammarus lacustris
(Amphipod)
© Ian Gardiner (Photo ID #17313)
Photographer's Submitted Details
Photo Location
Wapiti Lake, nr Jaffray, BC
Photographer
Ian Gardiner
Habitat
Shallow margin
Photo Date
Upload Date
July 08, 2012
Elevation (m)
UTM Zone #
Latitude
49.3844444444444
UTM Easting
Longitude
-115.368611111111
UTM Northing
Photo ID #
17313
Notes
Blue form. Length ~15mm. Collected 03 Jun 2012. In a study by Hindsbo - https://www.nature.com/articles/238333a0.pdf - it was found that 100% of blue Gammarus lacustris (5% of the sample studied) were infected with the final larval stage of the parasitic worm Polymorphus sp. It was demonstrated that this parasite affects both the colour and behaviour of Gammarus, making it more susceptible to predation by Polymorphus' final hosts - waterbirds. The blue colour is caused by the intake of carotenoids by Polymorphus from their intermediate hosts. Polymorphus can be seen as the bright orange spot under the colourless cuticle. Location coordinates have been offset by up to 5km.
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