Field Guide

Sometimes called the blue-point, this mussel species is widely distributed in Missouri rivers and is occasionally found along reservoir margins.

This favored habitat of this vulnerable species is large streams or rivers in firm sand and mud. The bumps on the shell may help to anchor it in the river bottom.

The uniform shell thickness and hard, white nacre made this mussel a favorite for button manufacturing, in the days before most buttons were made of plastic.

This endangered native mussel lives in flowing waters of large streams among gravel and cobble.

Of Missouri’s two species of freshwater shrimp, the Ohio River shrimp is certainly the rarest. It was thought to be extirpated from our state but was rediscovered recently in the Mississippi River.

At one time the most valuable shell to the commercial button industry, the ebonyshell is now classified as endangered in Missouri and is a candidate for federal endangered status.

Bryozoans are tiny, filter-feeding invertebrates. They create colonies that can be mossy, branching, or round and jellylike.

Giant water bugs are huge aquatic insects that frequently fly around electric lights at night. They are infamous for the painful bite they can deliver, but fish, birds — and some people — find them tasty!