Listing
Dec 1, 1993
Dec 1, 1993 Listing (Substantial)
ETWP; 90-Day Finding on a Petition to List Nine Bexar County, TX, Invertebrates
- Publication type: 90 day petition finding
Item 1
FWS Focus
Overview
Characteristics
Overview
The Rye Cove isopod is an eyeless, unpigmented isopod that exclusively lives in the clear cave streams of the Rye Cove area of southwestern Virginia. Like other isopods, the Rye Cove isopod is a crustacean with a rigid, segmented exoskeleton. This isopod primarily occupies riffles in cave streams, where it can filter the water for oxygen and perhaps food.
Scientific Name
Lirceus culveri
Common Name
Rye Cove cave isopod
FWS Category
Crustaceans
Identification Numbers
Characteristics
Characteristic category
Life Cycle
Characteristics
Reproduction
All isopod females brood their young in a pouch under the thorax.
Life Cycle
Very little is known about the life history and life cycle of this species.
Characteristic category
Behavior
Characteristics
Behavior
Rye Cove Cave isopods are blind and live in continuous darkness. They cannot swim, but instead crawl under and on the surface of rocks and other substrates beneath the water. Evidence suggests they can withstand high flow-rates by clinging to these surfaces.
Characteristic category
Physical Characteristics
Characteristics
Size & Shape
At only a half-inch long and entirely unpigmented, Rye Cove Cave isopods are hard to spot. Similar in shape to other isopods, this cave-dwelling species resembles common wood louse and pill bugs.
Characteristic category
Habitat
Characteristics
Habitat
These isopods are exclusively found within the underground cave streams of the Rye Cove area of southwestern Virginia, a significant karst area defined by landscape underlain by limestone that has been eroded, producing ridges, towers, fissures and sinkholes. They are typically found in riffles, where they can filter the water for food and oxygen.
Characteristic category
Food
Characteristics
Food
Given how illusive this species is, not much is known about its feeding habits. However, Rye Cove Cave isopods are thought to collect organic matter that filters into the cave streams or scrape bacterial film from substrate.
Geography
Characteristics
Range
These isopods are exclusively found within Rye Cove area of southwestern Virginia.
Timeline
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16 Items