Grassland Crayfish

Arthropods are one of the largest groups of animals within the animal kingdom, comprised of insects, spiders, and their kin, as well as all manner of sea life like shrimp, crabs and even lobsters. Recently, after one of the recent storms we have been experiencing here in Northwest Missouri, we noticed our granddaughters pool had blown away into the ditch along the highway. After retrieving it, a crayfish was discovered using it as a convenient hiding spot. After taking a few pictures, it was released into our garden pond to live another day. There are over 500 species of crayfish in the world and more than half live in North America. 

This particular crayfish is the grassland crayfish, or prairie crayfish as it is also known as. Crayfish in general go by many different names, including crawdads, mudbugs, and lawn lobsters. Grassland crayfish are somewhat common in Missouri and like their name suggests are found in open grasslands and prairies, however with the reduction of those available habitats, they often use temporary wetlands, or wet ditches (such as the one we found). Historically much of Missouri was made up of tall grass prairies. With the increased need of land in the agricultural industry, and the overall expansion of cities with exponential growth and development Missouri has lost more than 95% of its native prairies and grasslands. The remaining remnant prairies are predominantly owned by the Missouri Department of Conservation, The Nature Conservancy, private landowners, as well as a few other conservation minded organizations. These remaining small prairies should be protected for many reasons, but chief among them to guarantee the survival of the plant and animal species that rely on them.

The grassland crayfish is an average sized crayfish reaching lengths up to three inches, and may be red, or reddish-brown with little to no spots or blotches. They resemble another crayfish that lives in our state called the devil crayfish, but unlike the grassland species, the devil crayfish will never be uniformly red. While these crayfish are considered somewhat common in Missouri, they are rarely encountered by humans because of their secretive nature and nocturnal habits. These crayfish dig burrows using their claws to excavate and their tail to carry the dirt to the surface and pile it around the opening in a chimney sort of fashion. During the heat of summer, they remain underground in these burrows, which may be more than six feet deep. During the evening hours they will come to the surface and seek food or mates. Decomposers by nature, these omnivores eat both animal and plant matter and are able to break down plants highly resistant to decay. 

Due to their impact on the environment, they are often thought of as ecosystem engineers. Crayfish come in three classifications. The primary burrowers, secondary burrowers, and tertiary burrowers. The primary excavators may burrow up to fifteen feet underground far away from water, secondary excavators dig burrows closer to water and may have tunnels that reach bodies of water, the tertiary species typically do not dig burrows, and instead reside within bodies of water hidden under debris or rocks. The burrows they dig allow nutrients to reach the roots of plants and create passages for rainwater to reach deeper into the earth. Many animals like the Northern crayfish frog, snakes and small mammals use the burrows created by these excavating crayfish as shelters. In the case of the crayfish frog, a species of conservation concern in our state, they rely heavily on the burrows created by the grassland crayfish. Like the crayfish, the crayfish frog inhabits prairies, and with the reduction of prairies and available burrows the crayfish frog struggles to survive. When we destroy one component of the environment, it nearly always has a trickle-down effect on everything in the food chain of that environment. Destroy the prairie, the crayfish has no place to burrow, no burrows will impact plants, and removes the sheltering areas the crayfish frog relies on, with the loss of the frog Missouri loses one of its most unique amphibians. It is vitally important that we conserve the remaining prairies and grasslands we have and continue to restore land back to its historical prairie state when possible

Crayfish are also considered important indicator species of water quality, because of their intolerance of polluted water sources. With the absence of crayfish in an area where they would typically be, scientists can begin studying the possible reasons for their absence. This allows for quicker intervention in potential environmental catastrophes. The opposite can be said as well, the presence of crayfish should indicate clean, healthy water.

Crayfish play an important role in the medical field. There is evidence that crayfish experience similar anxiety as humans. Scientific experiments have been conducted that showed crayfish exposed to stressful situations will have an increased anxious response and not behave in normal ways to existing environmental conditions. These crayfish were given an electrical shock and then placed in a cross shaped tank. Two arms of the cross were lit up brightly, and two arms were dark. Those crayfish that were shocked always went into the dark arms and avoided the light. When injected with a common antianxiety drug, used by humans today, the crayfish were seemingly calmer and bolder and would explore all arms of the tank. This knowledge has huge implications in the understanding and treatment of anxiety disorders in humans. Just one more reason to appreciate these little crustaceans.

Crayfish reach reproductive age between five and six years. Males will molt into their breeding form with larger claws, a longer body, sharper spines, and a tougher exoskeleton. Being larger and tougher helps them battle other males during mating season. Once mating season is over, however, they molt again, after which they resemble their pre-breeding form once more. 

Breeding rituals of crayfish tend to be an aggressive affair with much fighting between males. Dominate crayfish that win fights against other males will behave aggressively towards other crayfish and even towards their own reflections. Subordinate crayfish who lose fights avoid their reflections and walk backwards to keep an eye on other crayfish in a timid fashion. Those who fall into either category typically stay in that role. In other words, Winners remain winners and losers remain losers. It was once believed that crayfish in the dominant role released some sort of pheromone the female could smell and thus were able to better choose an appropriate mate. Now there is some indication based on laboratory studies that this isn’t the case. Instead, they participate in a primitive sort of eavesdropping. They are hidden on the sidelines, watching the fight and when the winner emerges, she will allow mating with that individual. In other words, she isn’t taking his word for it, she needs to see it for herself. After mating the female will carry the eggs attached to her swimming appendages. They will remain with her two to twenty weeks before hatching. As newly hatched crayfish they remain connected to their mother through a stalk-like appendage. After molting the stalk no longer keeps them attached to the mother, however she will still carry them with her for two weeks or more. These tiny crayfish babies are able to wander on their own, but often return to the safety of their mother for a period of time.

These often-overlooked arthropods are important members of the environments they occur in. They serve various roles from soil excavators, decomposers, indicator species, landlords to frogs and other wildlife, food for a wide variety of animals, including humans and medical specimens for scientific research that benefit human health. Sometimes the lowliest of creatures fill the most important roles. 

 

 

Prickly Pear Cactus

 

Missouri is home to many wild edibles, but one in particular stands out. The prickly pear cactus, paddle cactus, or devils tongue is a native cactus growing throughout out state. When we think of cactus, we typically think of dry, arid deserts, and with good reason as that is where most cactus grow. The prickly pear does seem to prefer arid, rocky glades in their native range; however, they have adapted well to seemingly any weather conditions and are found through much of the North America, south of Canada. The name prickly pear is in reference to the fruit the cactus produces in mid to late summer after the blooms have faded away. Some use the term to describe the plant itself, and it certainly is prickly. This cactus bites, as I have been bitten many times by mine. Tiny, clear spines are difficult to remove from skin!

 Prickly pear is in the genus Opuntia and was named after the ancient Greek city of Opus. It was said an edible plant grew there and could be propagated just by rooting its leaves. While prickly pear does not technically have leaves, the paddles containing the spines are modified stems of the plant. However, if you place a cacti pad on the ground, water it for a few weeks, it will root itself and start a new plant. They are exceedingly easy to grow. They will spread out about three feet or more and reach heights of around twelve to fifteen inches.  The pads will be blue-green or green and have ¼ to ½ inch spines covering them. The bright yellow flowers appear in mid-summer and once those blooms have died off, the reddish colored fruit appears. This fruit is often referred to as tuna, which comes from the Spanish or Haitian name for the plant. 

By The original uploader was Cactus.man at English Wikipedia. - Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons by Ludmiła Pilecka using CommonsHelper., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21213670

 

 

 

 

 

Prickly pear holds significant cultural importance to the Mexican people, so much so, that their flag contains an image of the prickly pear cactus with an eagle holding a snake. The significance of the image comes from an Aztec legend. During the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries the Aztec people governed most of the land we know of today as Mexico. One day an Aztec priest approached his people and told them that Huitzilopochtli, the God of sun and war spoke to him. He was instructed to tell his people they had to leave and set up a new capital city. To find this new location they were to travel until they spotted an eagle atop a prickly pear cactus devouring a snake. Eventually they came upon such a place and named it Tenochtitlan, which translates to “place of the prickly pear cactus.” This ancient city is now at the center of Mexico City. To honor this legend, the Mexican flag contains the imagery associated with the legend.

The pads of the cactus are called nopales, and are used in many remedies, including one for burns, much like using aloe vera for the same purpose. Drinks to treat hepatitis can be made from the juices of the pads as well as to help control diabetes. Raw pulp lowers the absorption rate of sugar in the blood, thus helping avoid insulin shock. Traditionally this plant has been used to treat inflammation, acid reflux and other digestive disorders, urinary tract infections, as well as skin conditions.

The diversity of this hardy cactus seems never-ending. The Aztecs used the juice as a form of adherent. They would soak the cactus pads overnight in water, and in the morning, they would be incredibly sticky. They would mix the sticky pads with mortar to create a strong glue-like substance that is still used in parts of Mexico today in construction.  Wheels overheating on your cart? Well, we have a solution for that too. Apply the juices of this cactus to the wheels and no more burning wheels. 

By Photogir - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=89434822

 

To this day there are borders of prickly pear throughout Mexico to mark boundary lines for property. No need for manmade barbed wire when nature provides a suitable alternative. Not only have humans found they can protect their property borders with this gnarly plant-----animals also benefit from its protection. Birds, rodents, and other small creatures will burrow or nest under the safety of the cactus pads. After all, not many predators would want to tackle those sharp spines to gain a meal.

Probably my favorite use for prickly pear is in the culinary department. There is a plethora of dishes that can be made from the juices of the pad, as well as the fruit. Anything from salads, soups, wine, desserts, main dishes, breads, and candy are all options for creative cooks willing to try something nature provides. You will not only find yourself experiencing new and unique recipes but gain the potential health benefits from this vitamin and mineral packed plant. Happy harvesting but be mindful of the stickers (they bite).

 

 

Mayflies--Natures Bioindicators

 

So often we as humans complain about not having enough time in our lives to get everything done that we want to. Whether it is traveling to far off places, reading those books we meant to read or spending more quality time with family, there just never seems to be enough time to get it all accomplished. Now, imagine if you will, that you are a mayfly. Mayflies, also called shadflies or Canadian soldiers, are insects in the family Ephemiperidae, a Latin name which translates into “short-lived” an apt name for these insects. As a mayfly nymph, after a long underwater existence you will rise to the surface buoyed up by the air accumulated between your first and second layers of skin. Once at the surface you will shed your outer skin (subimago) and take a maiden flight to a nearby leaf, at this time you will shed your skin a second time which results in your final adult form. Then the urgency sets in; you are now on a mission to find a mate, and lay eggs; shortly thereafter you are destined to die…all in the span of less than 24 hours. Some species of mayflies, like the American sand burrowing mayfly, have mere minutes to accomplish this feat. This truly gives meaning to making the most of the time we are given. With more than 650 species of mayflies in North America there is no shortage of species to see. They are more common in the Eastern half of the United States, with only a few species calling the Western portion of the United States home.

The lifecycle of a mayfly begins underwater as a nymph with seven pairs of gills. They live in the bottom sediment of fast-moving streams, slow moving rivers, ponds, and lakes. The nymphs feed on sediment; diatoms and several species are even predatory and feed on other aquatic insects. The presence of mayfly nymphs indicates that a water source is clean, unpolluted, and highly oxygenated. As such they are bio-indicators for healthy watery habitats. This allows environmentalists, scientists, and fisheries biologists to correct potential problems in those environments before the damage is irreversible. The subimago are a favorite food of trout and are often used by fisherman as bait. Trout fishermen also use mayflies as a model for the flies that they tie for bait. Mayflies are the only group of insects to have this subimago stage into adulthood. As a subimago they do not fly well, cannot reproduce, and lack the coloring of the adult form that would attract a mate 

 

Time is of the essence, when you only live a day or two, or perhaps only mere minutes, like the aforementioned black-brown mayfly, there is no time to waste on frivolity. Soon after mating, the female will drop her eggs upstream in the water; the current will carry the eggs downstream and deposit them on the substrate in the bottom of the stream. If the eggs are laid in lakes or ponds, she will drop them willy-nilly on top the water, and the eggs sink to the bottom.

In some parts of the world the emergence of mayflies is a remarkable sight, they all seem to appear at once in a mass exodus. Mayflies are frequently encountered at pole lights and other places well-lit at night especially in the early part of summer. In some parts of the world, hatches are so large they attract tourists from all over the world to witness the phenomena that is the mayfly hatch. In 2014 a hatch of black-brown mayflies in Lacrosse, WI was so large it was imaged on weather radar. It rose 2500 feet into the air and resembled a significant rainstorm. In areas of large emergences such as this, they quickly amass large die offs that pile up on roadways and other areas in a slippery, slimy mess, even upon occasion causing accidents. Millions of mayflies rising up out of the water in one large swarm, landing on every available surface, may seem like a nuisance to many humans, but these little insects serve a major role in the lifecycle of other species. Mayflies are not only consumed by trout and other fish, but birds, frogs, toads, other insect eating creatures get in on the all-u-can-eat buffet of mayflies as well.

Although their large numbers can be intimidating, they are completely harmless to humans. They cannot bite; in fact, they do not have fully functioning mouth parts. However, they do have stomachs, although no food will ever pass through it. Instead, it is filled will air which allows it to fly into the air in a buoyant flight pattern. This lack of mouth parts means they do not feed. Their only reason for existence it would appear is to mate, reproduce, and to be sustenance to other creatures. I did find one resource during my research that claimed they eat fruits and flowers, but in my opinion, this would be fallacy. Most likely they are sipping liquid from the fruit or nectar from the flowers. I know of no mayfly that has the ability to eat, nor do they live long enough to worry about eating even if they could.

In 1909 a woman named Lillian Bland, from Ireland was intrigued by photographs she had seen of early planes. So impressed was she by the manmade flying machines she embarked on a mission to create her own. Out of this evolved the “Bland Mayfly” the first female created aero plane. The maiden flight, in 2010, was more of a glider, and the success of this unmanned machine prompted her to mount a 20-horsepower motor on her invention and take flight. She successfully flew this plane until the middle of 2011, when her father, worried for her safety, bribed her to stop flying in exchange for a car he would give her. It appears she gave up the life of flying in exchange for a safer four-wheel mode of transportation.

 

George Crabbe, author of the poem “the newspaper” written in 1785, compared the brief life of the mayfly to the brevity of the newspaper. He waxed poetically the following:

                “In shoals the hours their constant number bring

                Like insects waking to the advancing spring

              Which take their rise from grubs obscene that lie

In shallow pools, or thence ascend the sky.

Such are these base ephemeras; so born.

To die before the next revolving morn.”

 

As summer progresses be on the lookout for the newly emerged mayflies that may pay a visit to your porch lights at night. They are delicate, beautiful creatures, and worth taking a second glance at. Keep in mind however that the mayfly you see tonight will be long gone by tomorrow night, having already left behind her eggs and the chance for future generations.