The Griffin Isopod

Many animals are on the brink of extinction, from habitat destruction, climate change, human activities, and many other travesties that are dooming species. One of the key components in extinction is invasive species, such as the Griffin isopod. The Griffin isopod, also known as the Orthione griffenis, is a parasitic isopod that affects many populations of shrimp and is one of the primary reasons that they are going extinct. 

The Griffin isopod was brought to America from some region in Asia around 1700, and has been leeching on shrimp ever since. This isopod enters the shrimp by swimming into its gil flap, and sucking on to it. This harms the shrimp, by stripping it of essential nutrients, feeding off its blood, and preventing it from reproducing. This is what a normal shrimp should look like, and this is what a shrimp with a griffin isopod attached to it looks like. In this photo, you can see the female isopod (the big parasite), accompanied by a male isopod (small one). The male attaches onto the female isopod when it enters the shrimp, which allows it to feed produce more parasites. This invasive species is most common in the regions where freshwater and seawater meet and affects millions of shrimp around the world.

As you know, shrimp are a vital part of our ecosystem. They are consumed by many birds, species of salmon, and many other animals living in these estuaries. These shrimps also filter about 80% of the water in these estuaries. If shrimp went extinct, it would cause an imbalance in the food chain, causing many other species to go extinct. 

Many researchers are finding ways to preserve the population of shrimp, such as keeping them in captivity until the isopod disappears, but have little research on how to actually get rid of these isopods. By raising awareness of this tragedy and studying these parasites, we could find an efficient way to save these shrimp and get rid of these isopods. If you see a shrimp infected by one of these isopods, please take the time out of your day to remove it, because the sanctity of our ecosystem depends on it.