Brits urged to complete important check to ‘stop the spread’ if they come across killer species

Brits have been urged to remain vigilant while spending time near some of the UK's beauty spots, following the invasion of a killer aquatic species.

It's something we rarely think about while spending sunny days out strolling along rivers or across fields, but our environments are filled with a complex eco-systems.

Eco-systems which can very easily be disrupted by the introduction or migration of invasive species.

The most obvious example of this are squirrels. Take a look out of your window and what colour squirrels do you see? Most likely grey ones, as their introduction led to the native red squirrels being decimated by a combination of habitat loss and squirrelpox virus.

According to several environmental agencies, a similar thing is happening in our waterways, due to the arrival of killer shrimp.

UK rivers are a battleground apparently (Getty Stock Images)

What are killer shrimp?

Killer shrimp (Dikerogammarus villosus) and Demon shrimp (Dikerogammarus haemobaphes) are two members of the crustacean family, which are native to the Caspian region of eastern Europe.

However the aquatic creatures have since been designated an invasive species across the rest of the continent after migrating through commercial shipping lanes, reaching the UK in the 2010s.

In 2014 they received the title of 'the UK's worst alien invader' due to their ability to drastically alter local ecosystems.

Why are killer shrimp bad for the environment?

When you think of shrimp, the first thing which springs to mind is most likely small, pink squidgy things served at seafood restaurants. Not at all the sort of thing which could wreck havoc on our waterways.

However Practical Fishkeeping explains the creatures have a 'voracious appetite' when it comes to the habitats they migrate to.

Who knew shrimps could cause such chaos (Getty Stock Images)

This includes native freshwater shrimp, small fish and insects such as water boatmen and damsel fly lava.

Now the death of small insects, certain fish and shrimp subspecies doesn't sound like much to worry about on the surface of things, but ask the question to any environmental boffin and they soon explain why disrupting the delicate balance of our local ecosystem is not a good idea.

According to the University of Plymouth, invasive species are considered one of the top five major threats to our ecosystem, causing extinctions and loss of biodiversity.

How can you identify killer shrimp?

Now I'm not expecting you to read this and then head out the a nearby river with a magnifying glass, but should you want to know the difference between killer and non-killer shrimp, this is what you need to look out for.

This is what a killer shrimp looks like, if you were wondering (Norfolk Non-Native Species Initiative)

According to Canal River Trust, both killer and demon shrimp are bigger than native freshwater shrimp when they grow to full size, measuring around 3cm. The aquatic invaders also sport a striped pattern on their backs and have cone-shaped protrusions on their tail.

Attempts to curb the number of these shrimp subspecies may also be in vain, as The Guardian revealed in 2021 that attempts to curtail their spread through British waters had failed.