Celebrating National Wildlife Day - Every Day

You wouldn’t expect shrimp to call one of the world’s largest solar farms – 60 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean – their home. But it’s a fact that two species of fairy shrimp currently reside at California's Topaz Solar Farms: the longhorn fairy shrimp, which is considered an endangered species, and the vernal pool fairy shrimp. At BHE Renewables, we work with wildlife biologists to help the fairy shrimp thrive. 

Both fairy shrimp species are quite small with slender bodies, large eyes, and 11 pairs of swimming legs that also function as gills. They are surprisingly graceful creatures as they can glide through the water upside down and swim by beating their legs in wavelike motions. 

The fairy shrimp are only active at Topaz during certain times of the year and primarily live in vernal pools, a type of wetland that is covered with shallow waters by winter and spring rains but can be completely dry during the summer and fall seasons. Even when it is scorching hot and bone-dry, fairy shrimp have developed unique adaptations to survive when vernal pools disappear.  

How does this survival mechanism work? When the shrimp lay eggs, their eggs drop to the bottom of the pool, and when the pool dries out, the eggs dry out as well. These eggs, also called cysts, have protective coverings that allow them to withstand extreme environments and even digestion by predators. These cysts remain in the dry pool bed until precipitation occurs again and water returns to the pools. This causes the cysts to hatch, which is why the fairy shrimp are only active during rainy seasons! 

Environmental Respect is one of our Core Principles, which means protecting the habitats of even the tiniest creatures. During the rainy seasons at Topaz, fairy shrimp duty ensues, and newly discovered vernal pools are blocked off from construction activities and any facility disturbances.  

More information about the longhorn and vernal pool fairy shrimp species can be found on the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service website. 

#EnvironmentalRespect #NationalWildlifeDay #Sustainability