Crustaceans: Native Species
Scientific name: Macrobrachium grandimamus
Common name(s): ‘Ōpae ‘oeha‘a
Status: Indigenous
Habitat: ‘Ōpae ‘oeha‘a are not good climbers, so they live in the lower parts of the stream closer to the ocean.
Preferred part of Stream: Mainly deeper pools, though can also sometimes be found in slower runs
Range in Hawai‘i: Found on Kaua‘i, O‘ahu, Maui , Moloka‘i, and Hawai‘i.
Diet: It scavenges for dead plants and animals.
Predators: Native and introduced fish species and ‘auku‘u (black-crowned night-herons)
Fact: The female prawn carries her eggs under her tail. When they hatch the babies drift out to sea, where they will stay until they return to the stream as adults. Their one small and one big pincer makes them walk unevenly, so they got their name ‘oeha‘a, which means “to walk crookedly.”
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