Letter from H. C. Robison

Letter concerning summer school at Utah Agricultural College

Millipeds (Arthropoda: Diplopoda) of the Ark - La - Tex. VI. New Geographic Distributional Records from Select Counties of Arkansas

We continue to report, in the sixth of a series of papers, new geographic records for millipeds of the state, including noteworthy records for some taxa collected from Crowley’s Ridge in eastern Arkansas. This contribution documents 47 new co. records and includes records for 19 species within 9 families and 5 orders. More uncommon millipeds found included Okliulus carpenteri (Parajulidae), Eurymerodesmus newtonus (Eurymerodesmidae), Pseudopolydesmus minor (Polydesmidae) and undescribed species of Ethojulus (Parajulidae) and Nannaria (Xystodesmidae). Undoubtedly, additional records will be reported in the future as several gaps in the distribution of Arkansas millipeds remain

Arkansas Endemic Flora and Fauna An Update with 13 Additional Species

Arkansas supports a diverse variety of endemic biota with most found in the Interior Highlands (Ozarks and Ouachitas) of the state. Since 1988, several compilations have updated the number of endemics known while some former endemic species have been found in other states and subsequently removed from the state list. Here, update to the list by adding 13 taxa, several of which are fish parasites, making a grand total of 139 current endemic species in Arkansas

Geographic Distribution and Life History Aspects of the Freshwater Shrimps, Macrobranchium ohione and Palaemonetes kadiakensis (Decapoda: Palaemonidae), in Arkansas

Two species of shrimps occur in Arkansas; they include the Ohio shrimp, Macrobrachium ohione (Smith) and the Mississippi grass shrimp, Palaemonetes kadiakensis Rathbun. The present survey is based on collections made between 1974 and 2008 with additional supplemental data from museum specimens to document the overall distribution of the 2 species. Our survey found a total of only 42 specimens of M. ohione from 6 localities (2 counties) in Arkansas, all taken from the Mississippi River. Specimens were seined over sandy substrates in 0.6-0.9 m of water without vegetation. A 1914 museum collection of 5 individual M. ohione is the only known occurrence of M. ohione from Phillips County. All other specimens were taken between 1974-1975 near the US 82 bridge (Chicot County). It appears that M. ohione is a relatively rare shrimp in Arkansas. Since specimens were documented from a single drainage system (Mississippi River) in only 2 counties, we recommend a “threatened” conservation status of M. ohione in Arkansas because of this restricted distributional range. However, P. kadiakensis is relatively abundant in Arkansas. This shrimp had previously been reported from 10 counties of the state. Over 3,400 specimens of P. kadiakensis were documented during this study from various sites in 49 counties and most were released upon capture. Grass shrimp were commonly found in sluggish backwater regions of streams especially preferring heavily vegetated lentic areas of pool regions. Mississippi grass shrimp have remained abundant and widespread in occurrence for the past 35 years. The Nature Conservancy lists populations of P. kadiakensis as secure (G5) in rounded global status. Indeed, Mississippi grass shrimp populations in Arkansas are also secure and in no need of special protection

Distribution, Habitat Preference, and Status of the Ditch Fencing Crayfish, Faxonella clypeata (Hay) (Decapoda: Cambaridae), in Arkansas

The ditch fencing crayfish, Faxonella clypeata (Hay), is a common and widespread crayfish that inhabits roadside ditches, intermittent first-order streams, shallow sloughs with heavy vegetation, and edges of swamps in Arkansas. Between 1997-2012, we made 55 collections of F. clypeata in 34 counties throughout eastern Arkansas, including 23 counties where F. clypeata had not been previously documented. At most of these locations within the West Gulf Coastal and Mississippi Alluvial Plain provinces, F. clypeata was found to be a locally abundant crayfish. With regard to conservation status, F. clypeata should be considered as “Currently Stable” due to its widespread distribution and general abundance throughout its range in the state

Distribution, Life History Aspects, and Conservation Status of the Spothanded Crayfish, Orconectes (Procericambarus) punctimanus (Creaser) (Decapoda: Cambaridae), in Arkansas

The spothanded crayfish, Orconectes (Procericambarus) punctimanus (Creaser), is an endemic crayfish of the Interior Highlands (Ozark Plateau) of Arkansas and Missouri. Fieldwork within the Arkansas portion of its overall distribution from 1999–2012 and a search of museum and literature records revealed a state distribution of 11 counties in northern Arkansas. Eighty-two collections of this crayfish were made from the White River system in 9 counties, including Baxter, Fulton, Independence, Izard, Lawrence, Marion, Randolph, Sharp, and Stone. Two additional counties, Clay and Searcy, are also added to the distribution of O. punctimanus from museum and literature records. This crayfish inhabits areas under rocks and rubble in clear streams and is found primarily in pool regions. Form I males were found mainly in September and October. We document additional new localities for O. punctimanus as well as provide a summation of all known localities for the species in Arkansas. In addition, various aspects of the biology of O. punctimanus are discussed. Based on our recent collections, we recommend a conservation status of “Currently Stable” (CS) for O. punctimanus in Arkansas

Arkansas Endemic Biota: An Update with Additions and Deletions

It has been over a decade since the publication of Robison and Allen (1995) that provided the definitive list of endemic flora and fauna of Arkansas. The present study brings up-to-date the endemic biota of the state. Since 1995, several new species have been described and new discoveries have been made, adding species to the state biota. Other species are deleted and new distributional information on other state endemics is presented. Specifically, 3 new plant species are added to the state list while 4 plant species are deleted. Sixteen new animal species/subspecies are added to the state list while numerous species are deleted. These changes bring to 110 (10 species of plants and 100 species/subspecies of animals) the total number of Arkansas state endemic plants and animals presently known, which represents a decrease by 7 species from the 117 species reported in 1995