Invasion History
First Non-native North American Tidal Record: 1949First Non-native West Coast Tidal Record: 1949
First Non-native East/Gulf Coast Tidal Record:
General Invasion History:
Ampithoe longimana was described from Vineyard Sound, Massachusetts and is native to the East Coast of North America from Veracruz, Mexico to the Bay of Fundy, Canada with an isolated population in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence (Mills 1964b; Barnard 1965; Bousfield 1973; Winfield et al. 2011). It also occurs in Venezuela, where its invasion status is uncertain (Martin and Diaz 2003). In 1949, it was collected on Catalina Island and in Newport Bay, California (CA) and subsequently found in Morro Bay, CA and Bahía de San Quintín, Baja California both in 1960 (Barnard 1965; Reish and Barnard 1967). However, later collections have not been reported and it was not found in later surveys of Morro Bay (Needles 2007; Needles and Wendt 2013).
North American Invasion History:
Invasion History on the West Coast:
Ampithoe longimana was first collected on the West Coast in 1949 on Santa Catalina Island, California (CA) (USNM 127599, Barnard 1965, US National Museum of Museum of Natural History 2015). In 1951-1954, this amphipod was found in a survey of Newport Bay (Barnard and Reish 1959). It was also collected in 1951 in the Estero de Punta Banda, Baja California (Barnard and Reish 1959) and later in the Bahia de San Quintin in 1960 (Barnard 1965, Carlton 1979, USNM 128304, US National Museum of Museum of Natural History 2015). Possible vectors of introduction include Eastern Oyster transplants, ballast water, or hull fouling.
There are no further records from the West Coast. Needles (2007) and Needles and Wendt (2013) surveyed the fauna of Morro Bay, CA in 2005 and did not find A. longimana. This amphipod could easily be overlooked, so we consider its establishment to be uncertain.
Description
Ampithoe longimana has two medium-large black eyes. The coxal plates are relatively shallow, a little deeper than wide, and the edges of the plates are smooth, lacking setae. Coxal plate 1 is the widest. Antennae 1 and 2 are elongated, especially in the male and are close to body-length. The peduncles of the antenna are long and slender, but less so in the female. The flagellum of antenna 1 is about three times the length of antenna 2. The flagellum of antenna 2 bears bristly whorls of setae.
The gnathopods are somewhat sexually dimorphic in this genus. In males, segments 5 and 6 of gnathopod 1 are about equal and densely covered with setae on their posterior edges. The palm of the gnathopod is short and exceeded by the dactyl. In the female, segments 5 and 6 are shorter, but stouter, while the palm is longer than the dactyl. Gnathopod 2 is smaller in females than males. Further, segment 6 is shorter in females than in males, with a convex palm. Segments 4 and 5 of pereiopods 3 and 4 are roughly equal, with slightly inflated bases. The base of peraeopod 5 is deeper than broad.
In both sexes, the abdominal side plate 3 is broad with the hind corner rounded. Uropod 1 has a slender peduncle and the outer margin has 6 spines, while the outer ramus has 5-6 spines. Uropod 2 has an outer ramus with 3-4 spines. Uropod 3 has a relatively long peduncle, about twice as long as the rami and the outer ramus bears stout hooks. The telson is short, with a rounded apex, with low cusps. Adult males and females are about 10 mm long. Description based on Mills 1964b, Barnard 1965, and Bousfield 1973.
Taxonomy
Taxonomic Tree
Kingdom: | Animalia | |
Phylum: | Arthropoda | |
Subphylum: | Crustacea | |
Class: | Malacostraca | |
Subclass: | Eumalacostraca | |
Superorder: | Peracarida | |
Order: | Amphipoda | |
Suborder: | Gammaridea | |
Family: | Ampithoidae | |
Genus: | Ampithoe | |
Species: | longimana |
Synonyms
Potentially Misidentified Species
NE Pacific native, Alaska to Baja California, with long antennae (Barnard 1965; Chapman 2007).
Ampithoe plumulosa
NE Pacific native, British Columbia to Ecuador, with long antennae; antenna 2 is covered with dense, long setae (Barnard 1965; Chapman 2007).
Ecology
General:
Ampithoe longimana is a nest-building amphipod occurring in coastal waters and the outer parts of estuaries (Bousfield 1973). Gammarid amphipods have separate sexes, brooded embryos, and direct development. Female A. longimana in New England breed from May to September, with several broods per year (Bousfield 1973).
Ampithoe longimana has a wide native latitudinal range, from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Florida and Mexico (Bousfield 1973; Winfield et al. 2011). This amphipod is found in polyhaline waters (22-35 PSU), from the lower intertidal to 10 m depth, often in areas of medium current (Bousfield 1973). In Newport Bay, California, it was found 'only in the Upper Bay on coarse shell bottoms or among the roots of eel grass on coarse sand and pulverized shell in the intertidal zone' (Barnard and Reish 1959). This amphipod constructs nests of bits of seaweed glued together with secretions. Bousfield (1973) reported that diatoms were the primary food, but experimental studies show that this amphipod eats a wide range of seaweeds (Duffy and Hay 1991).
Food:
Seaweeds
Trophic Status:
Herbivore
HerbHabitats
General Habitat | Grass Bed | None |
General Habitat | Unstructured Bottom | None |
Salinity Range | Polyhaline | 18-30 PSU |
Salinity Range | Euhaline | 30-40 PSU |
Tidal Range | Subtidal | None |
Tidal Range | Low Intertidal | None |
Vertical Habitat | Epibenthic | None |
Tolerances and Life History Parameters
Minimum Salinity (‰) | 22 | Field data, Bousfield (1973), and reported from upper Polyhaline by Wass (1972) |
Maximum Length (mm) | 10 | Bousfield 1973 |
Broad Temperature Range | None | Cold temperate-Warm temperate |
Broad Salinity Range | None | Polyhaline-Euhaline |
General Impacts
The establishment of Ampithoe longimana on the West Coast of North America is uncertain. This species is an important herbivore and prey item for fish in East Coast estuaries, but has had no detectable impacts in California.Regional Distribution Map
Bioregion | Region Name | Year | Invasion Status | Population Status |
---|---|---|---|---|
NEP-V | Northern California to Mid Channel Islands | 1960 | Non-native | Unknown |
P070 | Morro Bay | 1960 | Non-native | Unknown |
P040 | Newport Bay | 1951 | Non-native | Unknown |
NEP-VI | Pt. Conception to Southern Baja California | 1949 | Non-native | Unknown |
P058 | _CDA_P058 (San Pedro Channel Islands) | 1949 | Non-native | Unknown |
Occurrence Map
OCC_ID | Author | Year | Date | Locality | Status | Latitude | Longitude |
---|
References
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