Tenuibranchiurus

Tenuibranchiurus is a genus of diminutive freshwater crayfish that live in the Australian state of Queensland. Only one species has been described, the swamp crayfish, T. glypticus.

Tenuibranchiurus glypticus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Subphylum:
Crustacea
Class:
Malacostraca
Order:
Decapoda
Family:
Parastacidae
Genus:
Tenuibranchiurus

Riek, 1951
Species:
T. glypticus
Binomial name
Tenuibranchiurus glypticus
Riek, 1951

T. glypticus is reportedly the smallest species of crayfish in the world.[1] It is distinguished from other crayfish by its small size, adults being only around 25 millimetres (1.0 in) long, and its claws which open vertically rather than horizontally or obliquely.[1]

Tenuibranchiurus lives in coastal wallum swamps, and stays among the sedges rather than in more open water.[2] Its habitat is highly fragmented, as land is used for the expansion of Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, and Tenuibranchiurus glypticus is therefore listed as an endangered species on the IUCN Red List.[2] Additional populations have been found at the periphery of its range, but these are thought to represent new, undescribed species.[2]

See also

References
  1. "Swamp Crayfish Tenuibranchiurus glypticus". Queensland Museum. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
  2. J. Coughran; K. L. Dawkins & J. Furse (2010). "Tenuibranchiurus glypticus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2010: e.T153680A4531497. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-3.RLTS.T153680A4531497.en.
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