Arkansas threatened and endangered species

South Dakota Field Office, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

It may come as a surprise to some, but there is a substantial list of threatened and endangered species in Arkansas. Aside from some of the more prominent species on the list, such as the Bald Eagle, there are also small mammals, bivalves, birds, fish, a reptile, an insect, a plant and others.

While some of the species on the list are well-known, many are quite rare, and as such, not as publicized. Regardless, these are all species that are found in very limited numbers, and as such, they warrant protection.

Below is a list of the current species considered "threatenee" or "endangered" in Arkansas:

Photo by David Thomas 

There are 21 threatened or endangered animal specie in Arkansas:

Reptiles: American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)

Mammals: Big-Eared Bat (Corynorhinus townsendii ingens) , Gray Bat (Myotis grisescens), Indiana Bat (Myotis sodalis)

Fish: Arkansas River Shiner (Notropis girardi), Ozark Cavefish  (Amblyopsis rosae), Pallid Sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus), Leopard Darter (Percina pantherina)

Birds: Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), Least Tern (Sterna antillarum), Red-Cockaded Woodpecker (Sterna antillarum)

Insect: American Burying Beetle (Nicrophorus americanus)

Crustacean: Cave Crayfish (two types--Cambarus aculabrum and Cambaraus zophonastes)

Mollusks: Magazine Mountain Shagreen (terrestrial snail--Mesodon magazinensis), Arkansas Fatmucket (clam--Lampsilis powelli), Curtis Pearlymussel (Epioblasma florentina curtisii), Pink Mucket (clam--Lampsilis abrupta), Fat Pocketbook (clam--Potamilus capax), Ouachita Rock Pocketbook (clam--Arkansia wheeleri), Speckled Pocketbook (clam--Lampsilis streckeri)

Missouri Conservationist, mdc.mo.gov/conmag

There are 6 threatened or endangered plant species in Arkansas:

Plants: Harperella (Ptilimnium nodosum), Geocarpon minimum (no common name), Pondberry (Lindera melissifolia), Missouri Bladderpod (Lesquerella filiformis), Easter Prairie Fringed Orchid (Platanthera leucophaea), Running Buffalo Clover (Trifolium stoloniferum).