Diporeia

Diporeia
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Amphipoda
Family: Pontoporeiidae
Genus: Diporeia
Bousfield, 1989[1][2]
Type species
Diporeia hoyi
(S.I. Smith, 1874)[2]
Species[3]
  • Diporeia brevicornis (Segerstråle, 1937)
  • Diporeia erythophthalma (Waldron, 1953)
  • Diporeia filicornis (S.I. Smith, 1874)
  • Diporeia hoyi (S.I. Smith, 1874)
  • Diporeia intermedia (Segerstråle, 1977)
  • Diporeia kendalli (Norton, 1909)

Diporeia is a North American genus of freshwater amphipod that was formerly a dominant form of zooplankton in the Great Lakes.[1] Their loss in numbers is believed to be due to the presence of invasive species.

Habitat

Diporeia are most common is areas of the Great Lakes with a water depth between 30 m (98 ft) and 125 m (410 ft) deep. They remain present throughout the Great Lakes, especially in Lake Superior.[4]

Decline

The population of Diporeia began to fall rapidly in the 1990s, a decline which has continued. The species has seen major losses in all Great Lakes, with the exception of Lake Superior.[5] The decline of the species, believed to be due to invasive species of mussels, has negatively impacted the fishing industry in the Great Lakes.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b Debruyne, Robin. "Diporeia". Zooplankton of the Great Lakes. Central Michigan University. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  2. ^ a b Bousfield, E.L. (1989). "Revised Morphological Relationships Within the Amphipod Genera Pontoporeia and Gammaracanthus and the "Glacial Relict" Significance of their Postglacial Distributions". Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. 46 (10): 1714–1725. doi:10.1139/f89-217.
  3. ^ "Diporeia Bousfield, 1989". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 15 January 2026.
  4. ^ Rhude, Kirsten S.; Sterner, Robert W. (February 2023). "Diporeia site preference in Lake Superior: Food or physical factors?". Journal of Great Lakes Research. 49 (1): 268–275. Bibcode:2023JGLR...49..268R. doi:10.1016/j.jglr.2022.11.008.
  5. ^ "Diporeia Subindicator Report 2022" (PDF). State of the Great Lakes. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  6. ^ "A Great Lakes mystery: The case of the disappearing species". Purdue University. Retrieved 15 October 2025.