Posted by Ecooper on 15-01-2013 01:21
#3
Tony Irwin wrote:
The red spot is the young stage of an acanthocephalan parasite (probably Polymorphus). It alters the shrimp's behaviour so that it is more likely to be eaten by a bird which is the primary host of the acanthocephalan.
Thank you very much for this! I’ve been reading-up on the topic and it is fascinating. Now I am especially keen to get back to that stream this fall and see if I can find more infected specimens. Hopefully I’ll be able to dissect out a specimen to have a look at (and maybe photograph) under the microscope. I’ll definitely need to lay off the coffee that day!
Cheers,
EC
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