Phallocryptus fahimii

Phallocryptus fahimii
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Branchiopoda
Order: Anostraca
Family: Thamnocephalidae
Genus: Phallocryptus
Species:
P. fahimii
Binomial name
Phallocryptus fahimii
Schwentner, Rodov & Rajaei, 2020

Phallocryptus fahimii, is a fresh water anostracan crustacean discovered in 2017 from a seasonal lake in the Lut Desert[1][2][3][4][5] in southeast Iran. This heat-resistant fairy shrimp lives in a lake with water temperatures reaching 87 °F (31 °C). It is the fifth described species in the genus Phallocryptus. The specific epithet commemorates the late Hadi Fahimii, a conservationist who took part in the expedition of the Lut Desert and died in 2018 from an airplane crash. Morphologically, this newly discovered species shows minimal differences from its relatives in the Phallocryptus genus. A distinguishing characteristic of this fairy shrimp is that it can lay its eggs in desert sand for decades while they await the rare presence of water. P. fahimii developed these unique characteristics due to its harsh environmental conditions throughout the Lut Desert, which in Persian, translates into “desert of emptiness.” Dr.Hossein Rajaei, one of the researchers that made the shrimp discovery, suggested, “they gave it this name because many people believed there was no life in this desert.”[5]

  1. ^ Taylor & Francis Group (2020-09-06). "New Species Found in the Hottest Place on Earth". SciTechDaily. Retrieved 2020-10-02.
  2. ^ Jones, Alexandra Mae (2020-09-09). "Scientists discover a new crustacean species in one of the hottest places on Earth". CTVNews. Retrieved 2020-10-02.
  3. ^ Schwentner, Martin; Rudov, Alexander V.; Rajaei, Hossein (2020). "Some like it hot: Phallocryptus fahimii sp. n. (Crustacea: Anostraca: Thamnocephalidae) from the Lut desert, the hottest place on Earth". Zoology in the Middle East. 66 (4): 331–341. doi:10.1080/09397140.2020.1805139. S2CID 225068533.
  4. ^ Imbler, Sabrina (2020-09-21). "In a Desert's Burning Sands, Shrimp". The New York Times. U.S. Retrieved 2020-10-03.
  5. ^ a b Simanaitis, Dennis (2020-11-05). ""Desert-Dwelling Fairy Shrimp"". CTVNews. Retrieved 2020-11-05.