Orconectes menae Creasar, 1933

Morehouse, Reid L. & Tobler, Michael, 2013, Crayfishes (Decapoda: Cambaridae) of Oklahoma: identification, distributions, and natural history, Zootaxa 3717 (2), pp. 101-157 : 130

Orconectes menae Creasar, 1933 : Mena Crayfish

General charateristics. Adults rarely exceed 80 mm in total length and the areola is open. The rostrum is wide with convex margins and blunt lateral spines. Chelae are deeply punctate dorsally and ventrally, and fingers have deep longitudinal grooves. In form I males, gonopods terminate in two long processes, with the central projection corneous and bent caudally at the tip. In females, the annulus ventralis is nearly spherical with tubercles on either side of sinus, and the fossa is median and deep (Creaser, 1933).

Life coloration. The background color is tan to brown and uniform. The carapace and abdomen are slightly mottled ( Figure 57 ). Chelae are usually tipped in orange.

Similar species. In Oklahoma, O. menae closely resembles O. leptogonopodus (see O. leptogonopodus for differences).

Distribution and habitat. Orconectes menae is a tertiary burrower and found in tributaries of the Ouachita River in Polk and Montgomery Counties in Arkansas and tributaries of the Red River in LeFlore and McCurtain Counties in Oklahoma. Our ecological niche model shows that the distribution and suitable environmental conditions of O. menae is confined to the Ouachita Mountain region ( Figure 58 ).

Life history. Form I males have been found from March through July, while form II males have been collected from April through July (Creaser & Ortenburger, 1933; Reimer, 1969). Ovigerous females have been collected from April and May (Robison et al., 2009), but no females with young have been reported to our knowledge. As we have collected form I and II males and females from October through April, the reproductive season seems to be very broad.

Syntopic species. Orconectes leptogonopodus , Orconectes palmeri longimanus , and Procambarus tenuis .

Conservation status. AFS: Threatened; Heritage Rank: Vulnerable (G3); IUCN: Least Concern; ODWC: Tier 1.

Additional resources. Dyer et al. (2013).

Figures

FIGURES 53 – 60. 53. Orconectes leptogonopodus 54. Potential distribution of Orconectes leptogonopodus 55. Orconectes macrus 56. Potential distribution of Orconectes macrus 57. Orconectes menae 58. Potential distribution of Orconectes menae 59. Orconectes meeki brevis 60. Potential distribution of Orconectes meeki brevis.