Aquatic Invertebrates
Media
![Photo of a painted devil crayfish standing on a sandy substrate](/sites/default/files/styles/media_library/public/mo_nature/media/field-guide/Painted_Devil_Crayfish_C_%20ludovicianus_Chris_Lukhaup_resized_10-18-17.jpg?itok=G2lhd7I0)
Species Types
Scientific Name
Lacunicambarus ludovicianus (syn. Cambarus ludovicianus)
Description
The painted devil crayfish is a burrowing lowland species. In Missouri, it is known from only a few locations in the Bootheel. Its overall color is olive green to blue, with reddish and cream markings.
Media
![Photo of a devil crayfish.](/sites/default/files/styles/media_library/public/mo_nature/media/images/2010/05/devil_crayfish.jpg?itok=HmXAWlv1)
Species Types
Scientific Name
Lacunicambarus aff. diogenes (syn. Cambarus diogenes)
Description
The powerfully built devil crayfish is usually a uniform olive or tan, without obvious blotches or spots. It digs underground burrows, often with mud chimneys, and has a wide distribution.
Media
![Photo of a northern, also called virile, crayfish.](/sites/default/files/styles/media_library/public/mo_nature/media/images/2010/05/virile_crayfish.jpg?itok=KP7TxN5c)
Species Types
Scientific Name
Faxonius virilis (formerly Oronectes virilis)
Description
The virile crayfish is large, reddish brown or green, and lacks prominent markings. The pincers are green with orange tips and are studded with whitish knobs. Paired dark blotches run along the abdomen. This species is widespread.
Media
![Photo of a water nymph crayfish, side view of specimen carefully arranged against black background](/sites/default/files/styles/media_library/public/mo_nature/media/field-guide/Water_Nymph_Crayfish_F_nais_Daniel_Johnson_resized_10-18-17.jpg?itok=_tA1o_aA)
Species Types
Scientific Name
Faxonius nais (formerly Orconectes nais)
Description
The water nymph crayfish is normally found in streams but can also be found in a variety of other aquatic habitats. It is greenish brown or brown with no prominent markings. Its known distribution in Missouri is spotty.
Media
![Photo of a coldwater crayfish.](/sites/default/files/styles/media_library/public/mo_nature/media/images/2010/05/coldwater_crayfish.jpg?itok=ClBfHNF2)
Species Types
Scientific Name
Faxonius eupunctus (formerly Orconectes eupunctus)
Description
The coldwater crayfish has a very localized distribution in the Eleven Point River system. It is stout, with a blue-green head and pincers and dark, rust-brown carapace. It is an imperiled species.
Media
![ellipse](/sites/default/files/styles/media_library/public/mo_nature/media/images/2010/06/ellipse.jpg?itok=BuL3BVbO)
Species Types
Scientific Name
Venustaconcha ellipsiformis and V. pleasii
Description
These small mussels use darters, a type of fish, as hosts for their young.
Media
![fatmucket](/sites/default/files/styles/media_library/public/mo_nature/media/images/2010/06/fatmucket.jpg?itok=cOsaWrCW)
Species Types
Scientific Name
Lampsilis siliquoidea
Description
The fatmucket was a favorite species harvested for the button industry in the early 1900s.
Media
![brokenray](/sites/default/files/styles/media_library/public/mo_nature/media/images/2010/06/brokenray.jpg?itok=GAHMC9Ft)
Species Types
Scientific Name
Lampsilis reeveiana
Description
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.
Media
![fragile papershell](/sites/default/files/styles/media_library/public/mo_nature/media/images/2010/06/fragile_papershell.jpg?itok=FCEwheH7)
Species Types
Scientific Name
Leptodea fragilis
Description
A widespread mussel that relies on freshwater drum as host fish for the developing young.
Media
![lilliput](/sites/default/files/styles/media_library/public/mo_nature/media/images/2010/06/lilliput.jpg?itok=-yCP7BOK)
Species Types
Scientific Name
Toxolasma parvus
Description
These diminutive mollusks are the smallest of Missouri’s freshwater mussels.
See Also
About Aquatic Invertebrates in Missouri
Missouri's streams, lakes, and other aquatic habitats hold thousands of kinds of invertebrates — worms, freshwater mussels, snails, crayfish, insects, and other animals without backbones. These creatures are vital links in the aquatic food chain, and their presence and numbers tell us a lot about water quality.