Our Endangered California Freshwater Shrimp

Blucher Creek hosts the California Freshwater Shrimp ( Syncaris  pacifica ), which is both Federally and State listed as Endangered.

Take a look at this enigmatic creature... and read more about its endangered status below.

photo: Larry Serpa	photo: Derek Acomb, DFG

photo: Derek Acomb, DFG	photo: Derek Acomb, DFG

Current Species Status:
The California Freshwater Shrimp (Syncaris pacifica) species is listed as endangered and is the only extant member of the genus Syncaris. The shrimp is endemic to Main, Sonoma, and Napa Counties north of San Francisco Bay, California. Seventeen coastal streams currently support the shrimp. The historic distribution of the shrimp is unknown, but it probably inhabited most perennial lowland streams in the area.

Habitat Requirements and Limiting Factors:
The shrimp is found in low elevation (less than 116 meters, 380 feet), low gradient (generally less than 1 percent) perennial freshwater streams or intermittent streams with perennial pools where banks are structurally diverse with undercut banks, exposed roots, overhanging woody debris, or overhanging vegetation. Most ofthe stream reaches flow through private lands. Existing populations are threatened by introduced fish, deterioration or loss ofhabitat resulting from water diversion, impoundments livestock and dairy activities, agricultural activities and developments, flood control activities, gravel mining, timber harvesting, migration barriers, and water pollution.

Recoverv Objective:
The objectives ofthis recovery plan are two-fold: 1) to recover and delist the California freshwater shrimp when numbers increase sufficiently and suitable habitat is secured and managed within 17 watersheds harboring shrimp and 2) to enhance habitat conditions for native aquatic organisms that currently coexist or have occurred historically with the California freshwater shrimp.

Recovery Criteria:
Four general drainage units support shrimp. The drainage units are 1) tributary streams in the lower Russian River drainage, 2) coastal streams flowing directly into the Pacific Ocean, 3) streams draining into Tomales Bay, and 4) streams flowing into San Pablo Bay. Problems within ssociated watersheds must be identified and watershed plans prepared for each ofthe 17 streams that now support shrimp.

Conservation Measures:
Blucher Creek:
Along shrimp-bearing stretches of Blucher Creek, The Nature Conservancy has gained voluntary cooperation to protect the shrimp with various landowners through their Land Owner Contact Program (Serpa 1991a). Landowners allow access to their property for monitoring of shrimp opulations.

In addition, The Nature Conservancy provides informal advice on management practices that would benefit the shrimp. As a result, some owners have excluded grazing from sections oftheir stream. The landowners also promise to inform The Nature Conservancy upon sale of their properties so that cooperation of new owners in protecting shrimp habitat can be obtained.

Laguna de Santa Rosa:
A coordinated resources management and planning process is being developed to determine management goals and implementation strategies with cooperation ofpublic agencies, private groups, and individual landowners. This creek historically supported California freshwater shrimp, however, the shrimp is now considered extirpated.

Information excerpted from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Recovery Plan. (7 MB pdf report available here.)