|This is, sadly, not what rainbow snakes actually looked like|
Two indigenous Florida species may have gone extinct sometime in the past few decades according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. No one has seen any fairy shrimps or rainbow snakes in years. We don't want to make any assumptions based on their names, but, you know, Florida unfortunately isn't exactly known to be friendly to fairies or the be-rainbow-ed.
The species may have been extinct for years with out anyone actually knowing. The pair of animals were included in a petition to protect endangered species, but after a review the Fish and Wildlife Service realized their may not be anymore left to protect.
"The information presented by petitioners as well as information in our files suggests that the species are already extinct," says a report published by the Federal Registry according to the AP
Though, the animals will not yet be declared formally extinct. If any specimens are found, then the species may be placed on the endangered species list.
The fairy shrimp were known to have lived in waters a few miles south of Gainseville, while the rainbow snakes were indigenous to an area west of Lake Okeechobee. Sadly, in contrast to their name they were not actually rainbow striped, but rather were a glossy black with three red stripes.
No evidence of any spotting of the species exists in the past 50 years. Maybe they all just moved to San Francisco and didn't tell anyone?
Follow Miami New Times on Facebook and Twitter @MiamiNewTimes.