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National Invasive Species Information Center
U.S. Department of Agriculture
  1. Home
  2. Aquatic Invasives
  3. Aquatic Invertebrates
  4. Killer Shrimp

Killer Shrimp

Scientific Name

Dikerogammarus villosus (Sowinsky, 1894) (CABI)

Common Name

Killer shrimp

Native To

Eastern Europe (NAS Database)

Date of U.S. Introduction

Not introduced

Means of Introduction

Could enter the U.S. through ballast water discharge (NAS Database)

Impact

In Europe, killer shrimp populations have caused significant ecological disruption by reducing biodiversity (NAS Database)

Current U.S. Distribution

Not currently established

Killer shrimp

Killer shrimp

Credit

Photo by S. Giesen; NOAA, Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory

Source
NOAA. Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory.

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Partnership
Federal Government
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Professional
Citations

  • CABI. Invasive Species Compendium. Dikerogammarus villosus. CAB International. [Accessed Mar 5, 2015].

  • Great Lakes Aquatic Nonindigenous Species Information System and Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database. Fact Sheet - Killer Shrimp. USGS, Gainesville, FL. [Accessed Jul 19, 2016].