Field Guide

The bristly cave crayfish is a whitish crayfish with small, unpigmented eyes and long, slender pincers with noticeable setae (bristles). It lives in caves in the Springfield Plateau region of the Ozarks.

The Arkansas brokenray only occurs in streams that flow south off of the Salem and Springfield plateaus, so it is found only in about the southern quarter of Missouri.

A widespread mussel that relies on freshwater drum as host fish for the developing young.

When a floater dies, this large mussel with a thick shell will actually rise to the water surface and float as it decays.

One of the most widespread and numerous mussels in southern Missouri.

A large dorsal wing and purple lining make identification of this widespread mussel easy.

The plain pocketbook is one of the most common and widespread mussels in our state. It is oval, relatively large, and occurs frequently.

Round pigtoes are more rounded than Wabash pigtoes. Usually, the nacre (the shell lining) is white, but in rare individuals it is bright pink.

Rarely seen, this endangered freshwater mussel has a thin and delicate shell that is strikingly beautiful inside.

Nacre color varies from purple to pink to white. In smaller rivers, the shell is much thinner.