• Postabdominal claw with one basal spine
• Anal groove of postabdomen completely edged by groups of spinules
• The middle setae of the lateral fascicles are the longest in the group
• Shell color amber with at least the brood chamber being colorless or faintly amber
• Rostrum long, generally projecting beyond the tips of the antennular setae
• Ocellus larger than the eye
• Prominent rounded notch in the labrum

• Alona bicolor forms a compact species group with Alona costata and Alona rustica, and is commonly found with either one or both of the other two species (2).

• New England, though its range may extend to Quebec and New Brunswick (2).

• Clear softwater lakes in the vicinity of clean granite boulders or sand (2).

(1) FREY, D.G. 1965. Differentiation of Alona costata Sars from two related species (Cladocera, Chydoridae). Crustaceana. 8: 159-173.

(2) FREY, D.G. 1969. Further notes on Alona bicolor Frey, 1965 (Cladocera, Chydoridae), with a description of the male. Trans. Amer. Microsc. Soc. 88: 380-386.