ANHC’s Aquatic Ecologist, Dustin Lynch, recently held an educational event for the Central Arkansas Master Naturalists (CAMN) at Lorance Creek Natural Area (NA). A follow-up to Lynch’s virtual presentation for the CAMN about Arkansas’s crayfish diversity, this in-person event gave members a chance to learn first-hand about Arkansas’s crayfish, fish, and aquatic insects. COVID-19 safety measures for groups were followed.
With assistance from Brie Olsen, ecologist coordinator, Arkansas Division of Environmental Quality, Lynch overnight-live trapped fish and crayfish species at the natural area. He discussed the natural history and adaptations of the species collected with the CAMN participants. A highlight of the day was finding two types of crayfish – a primary burrowing species, the Devil Crayfish (Lacunicambarus diogenes) and a stream-dwelling species, the Ouachita River Crayfish (Procambarus ouachitae) and comparing their adaptations. The Ouachita River Crayfish, a stream-dwelling species, is striking with mottled stripes on its sides and heavily spotted chela (claws) tipped in orange. Compared to the primary burrowing species, the Devil Crayfish, the Ouachita River Crayfish is slender with a powerful abdomen built for swimming. The Devil Crayfish is stoutly built with broad pincers adapted for use in burrowing along streams, swamps, and ditches.
Pictured above, left to right: Ouachita River Crayfish and Devil Crayfish side-by-side at Lorance Creek Natural Area
Crayfish weren’t the only crustaceans found during the event. A Mississippi Grass Shrimp (Palaeomonetes kadiakensis), one of two native freshwater shrimp species in Arkansas, was found. It is sometimes also called Glass Shrimp or Ghost Shrimp. This species rarely gets much more than an inch in length and can be abundant in the sluggish waters of bayous, swamps, and oxbows, where it is an important food source for many larger organisms. CAMN members were also able to observe a Grass Pickerel (Esox americanus), Dollar Sunfish (Lepomis marginatus), Black-spotted Topminnow (Fundulus olivaceus), Pirate Perch (Aphredoderus sayanus), Yellow Bullhead Catfish (Ameiurus natalis), and others. Pictured above: Mississippi Grass Shrimp (Palaeomonetes kadiakensis) at Lorance Creek Natural Area.
The Grass Pickerel is one of two species of pickerel native to Arkansas. Pickerel are active predators that pursue smaller fish in sluggish waters like those found at Lorance Creek NA. The brilliantly colored Dollar Sunfish is another fish that often occurs in lowland habitats like that at Lorance Creek NA. With their bright colors, these beauties are reminiscent of tropical fish.
The Black-spotted Topminnow, like other Topminnows, has a wide, flat head with a large, upturned mouth for feeding on insects at the surface of the water. The Pirate Perch is the sole member of a monotypic family, meaning that it has no close living relatives despite the “perch” portion of its name. Pirate Perch are adapted for life in slow-flowing vegetated swamps. Yellow Bullhead Catfish are among the most easily recognized fish due to their conspicuous barbels, the “whisker”-like sensory organs on their snout and chin, which are highly sensitive to touch and chemical stimuli.
The ANHC has a cooperative agreement with the Arkansas Master Naturalists (AMN) to provide annual training workshops for chapters around the state, including programming and materials on Arkansas’s natural divisions and natural communities, general agency programs, and in-depth botany programs and field trips. AMN are some of the ANHC’s most skilled volunteers and assist ANHC staff with various projects at natural areas throughout the state. The CAMN’s mission is to develop a corps of well-informed volunteers to provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities. Pictured above: Central Arkansas Master Naturalists observe a crayfish while ANHC Aquatic Ecologist, Dustin Lynch, describes it.
With assistance from Brie Olsen, ecologist coordinator, Arkansas Division of Environmental Quality, Lynch overnight-live trapped fish and crayfish species at the natural area. He discussed the natural history and adaptations of the species collected with the CAMN participants. A highlight of the day was finding two types of crayfish – a primary burrowing species, the Devil Crayfish (Lacunicambarus diogenes) and a stream-dwelling species, the Ouachita River Crayfish (Procambarus ouachitae) and comparing their adaptations. The Ouachita River Crayfish, a stream-dwelling species, is striking with mottled stripes on its sides and heavily spotted chela (claws) tipped in orange. Compared to the primary burrowing species, the Devil Crayfish, the Ouachita River Crayfish is slender with a powerful abdomen built for swimming. The Devil Crayfish is stoutly built with broad pincers adapted for use in burrowing along streams, swamps, and ditches.Pictured above, left to right: Ouachita River Crayfish and Devil Crayfish side-by-side at Lorance Creek Natural Area
Crayfish weren’t the only crustaceans found during the event. A Mississippi Grass Shrimp (Palaeomonetes kadiakensis), one of two native freshwater shrimp species in Arkansas, was found. It is sometimes also called Glass Shrimp or Ghost Shrimp. This species rarely gets much more than an inch in length and can be abundant in the sluggish waters of bayous, swamps, and oxbows, where it is an important food source for many larger organisms. CAMN members were also able to observe a Grass Pickerel (Esox americanus), Dollar Sunfish (Lepomis marginatus), Black-spotted Topminnow (Fundulus olivaceus), Pirate Perch (Aphredoderus sayanus), Yellow Bullhead Catfish (Ameiurus natalis), and others. Pictured above: Mississippi Grass Shrimp (Palaeomonetes kadiakensis) at Lorance Creek Natural Area.The Grass Pickerel is one of two species of pickerel native to Arkansas. Pickerel are active predators that pursue smaller fish in sluggish waters like those found at Lorance Creek NA. The brilliantly colored Dollar Sunfish is another fish that often occurs in lowland habitats like that at Lorance Creek NA. With their bright colors, these beauties are reminiscent of tropical fish.
The Black-spotted Topminnow, like other Topminnows, has a wide, flat head with a large, upturned mouth for feeding on insects at the surface of the water. The Pirate Perch is the sole member of a monotypic family, meaning that it has no close living relatives despite the “perch” portion of its name. Pirate Perch are adapted for life in slow-flowing vegetated swamps. Yellow Bullhead Catfish are among the most easily recognized fish due to their conspicuous barbels, the “whisker”-like sensory organs on their snout and chin, which are highly sensitive to touch and chemical stimuli.
The ANHC has a cooperative agreement with the Arkansas Master Naturalists (AMN) to provide annual training workshops for chapters around the state, including programming and materials on Arkansas’s natural divisions and natural communities, general agency programs, and in-depth botany programs and field trips. AMN are some of the ANHC’s most skilled volunteers and assist ANHC staff with various projects at natural areas throughout the state. The CAMN’s mission is to develop a corps of well-informed volunteers to provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities. Pictured above: Central Arkansas Master Naturalists observe a crayfish while ANHC Aquatic Ecologist, Dustin Lynch, describes it.