One hundred and forty three collections of freshwater amphipods
located in the Biodiversity Research Collections, Department of Ecology and
Evolutionary Biology at the University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT were
completed since 1959. Forty three collections were done by several researchers
and professors and one hundred additional collections were done by me since
1988. All major drainage basins were investigated except for the Southwest
Coast and the Hudson Rivers Drainage basins. Eight amphipod species were found.
No new amphipod species in New England are being reported.
The following eight maps indicate the different amphipod
species and their drainage basin location within the state of Connecticut.
Data indicate that different amphipod species appear within
particular drainage basins and in one case (Gammarus
pseudolimneus, Bousfield, 1958) may show postglacial drainage basin changes
between the Farmington River and the Quinnipiac River. One species (Synurella chambernaini, Ellis, 1941) may
have habitat preferences, as it is only found in the southeast in Red Maple
swamps.
List of Amphipods found in CT.
Synurella chamberlaini Ellis, 1941
Cangonyx pseudogracialis Bousfield, 1958
Cangonyx richmondensis Ellis, 1940
Cangonyx aberrans Smith 1983
Gammarus fasciatus Say 1818
Gammarus speudolimnaeus Bousfield, 1958
Gammarus tigrinus Sexton, 1939
Hyalella azteca Saussure, 1857
Distribution of Indicated Amphipod
Species by Drainage Basin.
Solid red circles indicate species,