| Author: Peter Del Bosque
Founder of Socialeaf, Peter's bio can be found by clicking on this Google+ link.
The cute little red shrimp, also known by science as the Halocaridina rubra and known to Hawaiians as ʻōpaeʻula, is quite an interesting shrimp. It hails from the Hawaiian Islands and can be found in water pools created by depressions in lava. These pools are known as Anchialine pools and are considered by scientists as an extreme habitat. What is meant by extreme is that the pools’ chemistry and climate is constantly fluctuating. First of all, the water’s salinity levels can vary from mild to extreme in one day. Also, since these pools are shallow, water temperature levels can easily raise and lower depending on the time of day. Also, since the pools are relatively shallow, UV rays from the sun bombard all life forms living in the pools for hours until the sun sets at the end of the day. There is no doubt that these pools are extreme habitats, so for an animal such as the tiny red shrimp to be able to survive is these conditions is nothing short of amazing.
So you might be asking yourself, how could such a vibrant, survivalist of an animal become an endangered species? Well, it has a lot to do with the human society in which it cohabitates with.
For many generations, Hawaiian fisherman have been using the tiny red shrimp as bait. Although this impacted shrimp populations, they were used sparingly as a natural resource and not highly exploited.
Another connection the shrimp have with people lies in Hawaiian folklore. Hawaiian people have had a high level of regard for the tiny red shrimp for many generations. So much that Hawaiian people have made up folktales about these cute creatures. There’s a Hawaiian story called “The Legend of Waianapanapa” The story is about a Hawaiian princess named Popoalaea who fled from her cruel husband, Chief Kakae. She hid from her husband inside a cave near the edge of the sea. There, her servant fanned her with a royal feather. Her husband saw the feather in the water’s reflection which gave away her secret hiding place. Filled with rage, Chief Kakae murdered her on the spot. Since then, it is said that at certain times of the year when these shrimp bloom in the pools, it is actually a reminder of the tragedy of the slain princess.
Another connection to humans are that these tiny shrimp are quickly becoming popular pets. What’s interesting about having these shrimp as aquatic pets is that you never have to clean their tank and you never have to feed them. They literally make the most of their surroundings. The catch is that the shrimp need to be placed in sunlight for them to be able to sustain their life. This newfound pet has put another dent in natural red shrimp populations, but has not been nearly as damaging as human development. With so many new homes being built on Hawaiian shorelines, many of these pools have been filled in or bulldozed to create magnificent dwelling places for many of Hawaiian’s wealthier inhabitants. It is no wonder why these tiny creatures that are confined to tiny Anchialine pools are facing extinction.
There is however, an effort to preserve this valuable animal and the secrets it holds. The person at the forefront of the tiny red shrimp research is a molecular biologist by the name of Scott Santos from the University of Auburn. He said, in a recent interview with the National Science Foundation that, the rare ability for this shrimp to survive extreme environments could be advantageous to how we live our lives. He suggests that we should do everything in our power to protect this valuable species, because of what we can learn from this shrimp. He believes this shrimp contains secrets for enhancing the welfare of human life.
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