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Squat Lobster - Munidopsis polymorpha
These tiny white squat lobsters only live in the lagoon of Jameos del Agua, Lanzarote. In the 70s people could bath in the lagoon but I guess after discovering the uniqueness of this species and to preserve it, they forbid people from entering the water.
Considering it can only be found in this spot this is an endemic and quite endangered species!
As quoted from:
http://divemagazine.co.uk/eco/3748-british-beasts-squat-lobsters
...visitors to Lanzarote don’t even need to enter the water to have a privileged view of deep-water squat lobsters. An unusual colony of pure white squatties lives in Jameos de Agua, a volcanic cave with a deep pool of sea water. These squatties (Munidopsis polymorpha), known locally as ‘blind cave crabs’, are thought to have been swept up from the deep by volcanic eruptions, and are now trapped in the cave pool. Inside the huge cave, the environment, dark and still, mimics conditions in the deep sea, with the added benefit of no predators!...
''Munidopsis polymorpha'' is a species of squat lobster that is endemic to Lanzarote, Canary Islands. They are small, blind and pale, and can be found in the caves of Jameos del Agua, in lava tubes formed by volcanic eruptions 15,000 - 13,000 years ago.
Ovigerous females carry only two eggs which are relatively big in contrast to the numerous small eggs in other anomuran crustaceans. It is the animal symbol of the island of Lanzarote.
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124Life in the dark Posted 5 years ago, modified 5 years ago