Abstract
The freshwater decapod crustaceans of Arkansas presently consist of two species of shrimps and 51 taxa of crayfishes divided into 47 species and four subspecies. The shrimps are represented by Macrobranchium ohione and Palaemonetes kadiakensis. The crayfish fauna is the largest of any state west of the Mississippi River reflecting the variety of habitats within Arkansas as a result of the geologic diversity in the state. The Ozark Plateaus and Ouachita provinces are dominated by the genus Orconectes, while in the Gulf Coastal Plain Procambarus is the most conspicuous group. Other crayfish stocks present include Cambarus, found predominantly in the Ozark Plateaus province, and Bouchardina, Cambarellus, Fallicambarus, and Faxonella which are largely restricted to the Coastal Plain. The crayfishes and shrimps live in a broad array of epigean lotic and lentic habitats. In addition, a troglobitic crayfish occupies limestone solution channels, and burrowing crayfishes inhabit the subsurface water table. General discussions of the taxonomy and geographic distributions of the genera are presented, including brief descriptions of habitats in Arkansas that are utilized by freshwater decapods. Only the conservation of a single species, the troglobitic crayfish Cambarus zophonastes, is of concern in the state.
Recommended Citation
Bouchard, Raymond W. and Robison, Henry W.
(1980)
"Inventory of the Decapod Crustaceans (Crayfishes and Shrimps) of Arkansas with a Discussion of Their Habitats,"
Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science: Vol. 34, Article 9.
Available at:
https://scholarworks.uark.edu/jaas/vol34/iss1/9
