Gammarus and their parasites.

I´m hoping someone has knowledge about how the parasites of Gammarus work. As far as i know Gammarus are vectors of parasites, which means they are an intermediary host.
Also, the parasits are supossed to pass on fish and birds?

I´m asking because i know a source of wild gammarus where there are no fish, nor aquatic birds. I was wondering if that would mean they are parasite free.

Apparently one parasitic nematode is visible by eye, so you could theoretically select ones without the parasite. However i´d suspect there are several kinds of parasites that affect this invertebrates.
Finally, is there any proof of amphibians being affected by Gammarus parasites?
Any info will be greatly apreciated.

Ok, so i see information is scarce hehe.

I went to collect earthworms and decided to catch a few gammarids too since they were right there looking at me....daring me to try and breed them.

As far as i have been able to find out(and it´s been hard) the parasites that use gammarids as vectors will disappear and won´t be passed on the offspring(obviously). The parasites that affect gammarids directly are either visible, and therefore you can select them out, or a fungus. I have absolutely no idea if the fungus can portentially affect caudates, although i find it unlikely.

If anyone has any info at all i´ll apreciate it greatly.


By the way, the little buggers have only been a few hours in captivity and already they are feasting on newt pellets xDDD I have a feeling i might succeed in culturing them(fingers crossed).

Good luck with it! I have some Gammarus pulex that I'm hoping will multiply, I love watching them, they're always on the go! I would love to get enough going that I can keep a colony alive in the axies tank.

They certainly eat well!

Whatever parasites they have would not survive in captivity in the next generation if they need a new host. So breed them and you will have a clean culture.

As already mentioned there are parasites that use them as vectors that will obviously disappear after a while, and parasites that are specific to Gammarus, which means they can be passed on to future generations.