Circular of inquiries relative to the natural history of the American crawfish and other fresh water Crustacea

SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS.

319

CIRCULAR OF INQUIEIES

RELATIVETOTHE

NATURAL HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN CRAWFISH AND OTHER FRESH WATER CRUSTACEA.

Smithsonian

Institution,

Washington,

D,

C,

Ilarch 1, 1878.

The

Smithsonian Institution desires to call attention to the im- portance of securing for the National

Museum

full series of the Crawfish and other fresh-waterCrustacea of North America.

Recognizingthefactthat the agencyof

man

hasalready extermi- nated forms which once inhabited the streams

and

fresh-water basins of the eastern sideof the continent,it perceives the neces- sity for speedy preparation tosecure the species belonging to the various faunal areasbefore they are foreverlost toscience.

Many

factshaverecently beenadded to the recorded history of the Crawfishes whichenable a

more

exactpositionto betaken with regardto their origin andaffinities.

Many more

observations,how- ever, willbe needed tofillout theirhistory;

and

everyfact bear- ing

upon

thesubject will be of interest

and

value.

The

studentcannolongerbesatisfiedwith a bare designation of the species, but he must admit that each stage of growth has its

meaning, and thatso has everystep in physical advanceor diver- gence.

Itshould be remarkedthat thehabitsofaform

may

varyaccord- ing to environment and attending circumstances.

Thus

in the crawfish,a species will build chimneys of

mud

in somelocalities,

2 INQUIRIES

RELATIVE

TO

CRAWFISU.

while it willnotdo so in others.

At

oneseason of the yearitwill

wander

over awide rangeof surface,

and

at anotheritwillremain confined within narrow limits.

Distinct species live in themountain streams

and

in the springs at their sources.

Some

frequent themarshes of the lowlands, (both thefreshandsalt marshes) either near the streams, oradjacent to the bays,sounds, orocean.

Some

occur beneath stones in rivers, creeks,or branches; iu the

muddy

basins; beneath stones in the rapids;

among

grass and weedsⁱⁿ

more

quiet places, andin coves_; undershelving grassy banks; iu holes atthebottomof ponds,lakes, dams, andmill-races. Others bore holes in the meadows,or even in thehill-topsnearwater;

and

^iubringing

up

the

mud

andclay from their tube-like holes, pile it as a chimney at the entrance.

Thesespeciesatparticular times placeaplugof clayin theorifice of thechimney and sealthemselvesin for a certainlengthof time.

Still others reside in the drains and

mud

of the rice fields

and

plantations of the south,

and

sometimes burrow through the em-

bankments

allowing the waterto flood the region.

Inorderto securea

more

full and accurate knowledge of these creatures, theSmithsonian Institution respectfully requestsreplies, as far as possible,tothe following queries.

A

reference tothe

num-

ber willsufiice in cases

when

it is inconvenient to write atgreater length.

There arc three great groups of Crawfish which

may

be distin- guished by thedifference in the shajoe of thefront endof thehead.

1.

The

firsthas thetip of thehead with acutespine,

and

farther back with anothersharp, longspine eachside.'

2.

The

second has the tip of the head acutelytriangular, and usually with a minutetooth or notch eachsidejustback of it.

3.

The

third has the tip of the head almostconical, with the sidesalittle rounded, or with the extreme tip

armed

with ashort tooth.

INQUIRIES

RELATIVE

TO CRAAVFISH. 3 Other Crustacea will be found ^parasitic

upon

fishes and other aquaticcreatures,some in their mouths, stomachs, or intestines, or attached to their gills, or gill covers. Other kinds inhabit the shores ofbays, creeks, coves, &c.,beneath rubbish, or grass, or in the sand, or on the plants submerged in the waters, or even be- neath stones

and

other matter inponds,sometimesat greatdepths.

Some

attack fishes,

wound

them, suck their blood, or devour

them

; whileothers feed

upon

their eggs.

Various kinds of fishes swallow Crustacea,

and

they

may

be found^{in theirstomachs.}

Catfishes often

cram

themselves with them,

and

with their eggs.

Their eggs forma dainty morsel for aquatic insects

and

othercrea- tures.

Allthese creaturesof whatever formorkind will be acceptable, inall their stages,from the eggtotheadult.

They

canbe sent in alcohol,oralive, as

may

be most convenient.

When

placed influid, their colorsand markingsshouldbe noted

and

sent atthe

same

timeasthespecimens.

On

thelastpageof the presentcircular will be found thefigure of a crawfish with a separate representation of thetail,taken from the "First

Book

of Zoology,"

by

ProfessorE. S.Morse, (D. Apple- ton

&

Co.,

New

York.)

Answers

tothe queries

may

refer merelyto the

number

of the questions.

Full credit will be given to all

who

interestthemselvestosend specimens

and

observations.

JOSEPH HENRY,

SecretarySmithsonianInstitution.

4

INQUIRIES

RELATIVE

TO

CRAWFISH.

QUESTIONS.

1. Whfitkinds of Crawfishliveinyourvicinity?

2.

Have

you one kindin yoursprings,-

and

adifferentkind inthe streamswhich run from them?

3.

Do

they live in holes

made by

themselves atthebottom of the springs?

4. If so, do othercreatures livewith

them

in these holes? 5.

Are

theyactive there,or elsewherein winter?

6.

Do

thedifferentpartsof yourstreamsyield differentkinds? 7. If so,pleasereport

any

differencesin their habits?

8. Does onespeciesmasterthe otherand chase it away,or exter- minateit?

9. Doesthe kindin thesprings destroy thefloorsorother parts of your sjiriughouses?

10. Willyou securea few of the largestspecimensyou

may

find?

11.

Are

these large ones

more

shy

and

secretive than the

medium

sizedones?

12.

The

males

may

be

known by

the forked, hooked,or twisted ends of the firstpairof legs on thefore part of the belly proper.

Are

the malesorthe females of any one kind

more

abundant?

13.

At what

datesdo you findeggs on thebelly of the female? 14. Doesthe male, oranother female, helptoplace the eggsonthe

legs of the belly?

15.

What

isthesizeof the smallestfemaleyou haveever seen with eggs ; and

what

of thelargest?

16.

Are

the eggssometimessmaller,or fewer,than at other times? 17. Ifa specimen losesher eggs does she lay a

new

set?

INQUIRIES

RELATIVE

TO

CRAWFISH.

₅

18.

How

soonafterlayingdothe

young

oneshatch out?

19.

How many

timesdothey change theirshellbefore leaving the mother?

20.

How many

times do theychangewithin the year after leaving themother?

21.

Do

they split the shell lengthwise, or how, in

making

the change?

22. Doesthe changeso exhausttheir energies as tocause them to remaininert?

23. If so,for

how

long a time?

24.

Do

they unite sexuallyat all times of the spring, summer, or

autumn

?

25.

Do

they everso unitein winter?

26.

Are

they affected inany

way

atthe times of changing of the

moon

?

27.

Do

the malesfight

among

themselves forthe possession of the female?

28. Does

any

species live in thewells ofyourregion?

29. If so,in

what

kindof water?

30. Doesthe coldordarkness of such places deform

them

in any

way

?

31.

How

deepin thewell do theylive, and in

what

partsof it ? 32.

Do

^{you find}

them

ⁱⁿ thestandingwater of limestone quarries? 33.

Do

theylivein thepools of other kinds of quarries?

34.

Are

theyfound anywherein stronglimestone, iron,sulphur,or alkalinewaters?

35.

Does

thesand orgrit carried

down by

freshets kill or disable

them

^?

36.

Are

they

more

numerous in some places

now

than they were formerly?

6 INQUIRIES

RELATIVE

TO

CRAWFISH.

37.

Has

a

new

form

come

in

and

destroyed a formerone? 38.

What

areitsenemiesinyourvicinity?

39.

How

far doesit distribute itself over your region,

and

does it

leavelocalitiesto return to

them

again?

40.

Are

they nocturnal or diurnalin feeding,ortraveling?

41.

Does

onesex differfromthe otherinsuch habits?

42.

Do

they destroy vegetables or other garden products inyour region?

43.

Do

they cause

dams

toburst

by

burrowing throughthe

embank-

ments?

44.

Do

^{theysometimes}

swarm

^{after rains, either duringthe}

day

or night?

45.

What

^fishfeedon

them

^{inyourvicinity?}

46.

Do

theylivesingly, inpairs of thesexes, or in communities? 47. Does eithersex choose the

young

forfood?

48.

Such

asburrowin

meadows away

fromwater,

how

deepdothey bore the hole?

and

in

what

kind of subsoil?

49.

Do

theyalwaysburrowuntil moisture or waterisreached? 60.

How

long does it take to finish the burrow; stating the kind

ofground?

51.

Do

they use thetailas a shoveltoscoop out the soil?

52.

How

do they carryit to the surface,and

how

build thechim- ney?

53.

How

do theyplugitfrom beneath? 54.

How

highdo they build the

chimney

?

55.

Does

the winter rainwashit

away

andleavetheholeopen? 56.

At what

times, in

what

^seasons,doesitbuild chimneys?

INQUIRIES

RELATIVE

TO

CRAWFISH.

7 57. In

what

kind of weather do they plug thechimney?

58.

How

longata time does onework, and at

what

hours?

59.

Do

theyselect a treeand burrow beneath its roots, or carry the

chamber

beneath anunderground stonefor protection?

60. Doesa single species sometimes live in thewater, and at an- other time livein holeson theland?

61. Does it sometimes colonize beneath a stoneor log in ditch or

meadow

on the approachof cold weather?

62.

Have

you

more

than one kind living

upon

the branches, or on thetopsof, submerged weedsinyour streams orjDonds? 63.

What

isthe greatestdepth of water^atwhich they arefound?

64.

Do

the kinds which live on the weeds affect othei kinds of places?

65.

Do

they generallyrest with heads directedup stream? 66.

At what

seasonsandtimes of day do theseunitesexually?

67.

How

soonafterthis dothey laytheireggs?

68. Does the male uuite sexually with the female

when

she has eggs underher

body

?

69.

Where

does shego afterbeing fecundated? 70. Doesshefeed during incubation?

71. Is she, or he, soft-shelled atthe time of sexual union?

72. Please notepeculiarities of spot from which yourspecimensare taken?

And

state temperature

and

depth of water?

Name and

address of observer.

Date

of statement, 55

INQUIRIES

RELATIVE

TO CRAWFISH.

KEPKESENTATION OF A CEAWFISH

(Ca^nbarus virilis?)

FROM THE MISSISSIPPI EIVEE.

Fig. 1.

Fie-. 2.

Tail of Crawfish.