''Branchinella'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

crustacean Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean group ...

s in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Thamnocephalidae Thamnocephalidae is a family of crustaceans with wide distribution including Western Australia, Southern Africa and South America. It was originally described as a subfamily of Branchipodidae by Alpheus Spring Packard in 1883, and elevated to th ...

. This

fairy shrimp Anostraca is one of the four orders of crustaceans in the class Branchiopoda; its members are referred to as fairy shrimp. They live in vernal pools and hypersaline lakes across the world, and they have even been found in deserts, ice-covered mou ...

genus is found across many parts of the world, but especially western

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and

southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...

. Several

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

have small ranges and are threatened by

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

. For example, '' B. latzi'' is only known from south

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

and southwest

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, but it has been

extirpated Local extinction, also known as extirpation, refers to a species (or other taxon) of plant or animal that ceases to exist in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinct ...

from the

Uluru Uluru (; pjt, Uluṟu ), also known as Ayers Rock ( ) and officially Gazette#Gazette as a verb, gazetted as UluruAyers Rock, is a large sandstone geological formation, formation in the centre of Australia. It is in the southern part of the ...

region due to

pollution Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...

from urine and faeces of tourists.

Selected species

''Branchinella'' includes the following species: * '' Branchinella acacioidea'' Belk & Sissom, 1992 * '' Branchinella affinis'' Linder, 1941 * '' Branchinella alachua'' Dexter, 1953 * '' Branchinella apophysata'' Linder, 1941 * '' Branchinella arborea'' Geddes, 1981 * '' Branchinella australiensis'' (Richters, 1876) * '' Branchinella basispina'' Geddes, 1981 * '' Branchinella buchananensis'' Geddes, 1981 * '' Branchinella chudeaui'' (Daday, 1910) * '' Branchinella compacta'' Linder, 1941 * '' Branchinella complexidigitata'' Timms, 2003 * '' Branchinella denticulata'' Linder, 1941 * '' Branchinella dubia'' (Schwartz, 1917) * '' Branchinella frondosa'' Henry, 1924 * '' Branchinella halsei'' Timms, 2003 * '' Branchinella hardingi'' (Qadri & Baqai, 1956) * '' Branchinella hattahensis'' Geddes, 1981 * '' Branchinella kadjikadji'' Timms, 2003 * '' Branchinella kugenumaensis'' (Ishikawa, 1895) * '' Branchinella latzi'' Geddes, 1981 * '' Branchinella lithaca'' (Creaser, 1940) * '' Branchinella longirostris'' Wolf, 1911 * '' Branchinella lyrifera'' Linder, 1941 * '' Branchinella madurai'' Raj, 1951 * '' Branchinella mcraeae'' Timms, 2005 * '' Branchinella minuta'' Rœn, 1952 * '' Branchinella multidigitata'' Timms, 2008 * '' Branchinella nana'' Timms, 2003 * '' Branchinella nichollsi'' Linder, 1941 * '' Branchinella occidentalis'' Dakin, 1914 * '' Branchinella ondonguae'' (Barnard, 1924) * '' Branchinella ornata'' Daday, 1910 * '' Branchinella papillata'' Timms, 2008 * '' Branchinella pinderi'' Timms, 2008 * '' Branchinella pinnata'' Geddes, 1981 * '' Branchinella proboscida'' Henry, 1924 * '' Branchinella simplex'' Linder, 1941 * '' Branchinella spinosa'' (Milne-Edwards, 1840) * '' Branchinella sublettei'' Sissom, 1976 * '' Branchinella thailandensis'' Sanoamuang, Saengphan & Murugan, 2002 * '' Branchinella vosperi'' Timms, 2008 * '' Branchinella wellardi'' Milner, 1929 Some related fairy shrimp, such as '' Phallocryptus wrighti'', were formerly placed in ''Branchinella''.

References

Anostraca Branchiopoda genera Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{branchiopoda-stub