Meet the triops, an endangered species – a 3 eyed ‘tadpole shrimp’ that can trace its history back more than two hundred million years! i.e. during the Triassic period… before the dinosaurs!
Believed to have survived barely changed in all this time, the exceedingly rare triops cancriformis is thought to be the oldest living creature on the planet. They are seen quite regularly now at WWT Caerlaverock – one of only 2 locations in the whole of the British Isles – making it a UK stronghold for this incredibly scarce species, and potentially even internationally significant!
As WWT Caerlaverock have been carefully conserving the specialised wetland habitat for the natterjack toad population, it is thought that this is why the triops have survived here.
As was well publicised at the time, the triops were initially discovered in a WWT Caerlaverock puddle back in 2004! The adults only live for between 12 days and four months, but lay eggs which can lie dormant in dried pools for decades, until the pools are hydrated again.
WWT researcher, Dr Larry Griffin explained that, “In theory, the unhatched eggs in the mud samples here at Caerlaverock could remain viable on the shelf for anything from two to three decades and as such will remain an extremely effective ex situ conservation tool for the preservation of this species, much as a seed bank does for plants.”
We knew that Caerlaverock was a special place all along, but here’s another reason for loving it!
This video clip was featured in a recent episode of Autumnwatch 2017. If you’re quick, you can watch the whole episode here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/…/b09c…/autumnwatch-2017-episode-3
Information links:
WWT Caerlaverock:
www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/caerlaverock/experience/the-worlds-oldest-species/
www.wwt.org.uk/news/all-news/2009/05/other/200-near-extinct-tadpole-shrimps-hatch-at-caerlaverock/
Buglife website: