Tags: Crustacean.
The midvalley fairy shrimp Branchinecta mesovallensis is a small (7–20 millimeters or 0.28–0.79 inches) freshwater crustacean in the Branchinectidae family endemic to shallow ephemeral pools (pools that seasonally fill and dry up) near the middle of California’s Central Valley. These vernal pool ecosystems are home to other unique organisms adapted to the ephemeral nature of the water cycle in the pools in California’s mediterranean climate.