Introduction
The Guayana Shield encompasses a large region of northern South
America. It has an extensive and complex hydrographic network
that includes several coastal river drainages and large portions of the
Amazon and Orinoco River basins. A diversified fauna of freshwater
decapod crustaceans occurs in the region. This fauna is constituted by
several species of four families of shrimps (Atyidae, Euryrhynchidae,
Palaemonidae and Sergestidae) and two of crabs (Pseudothelphusidae
and Trichodactylidae). In the present contribution, we intend to briefly
review the current state of knowledge about these crustacean groups
by presenting a general overview of its diversity in the Guayana
Shield, including a check list of the species according to the countries
and hydrographic basins of this region, assessment of possible
endemic, rare or threatened species, evaluate scientific efforts, and
ultimately try to highlight the information gaps in order to support
decisions for conservation priorities for this region.