Cambarunio hesperus

Watters, 2018

Western Rainbow

GNRUnranked Found in 1 roadless area NatureServe Explorer →
GNRUnrankedGlobal Rank
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.1088417
Element CodeIMBIV4C020
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryInvertebrate Animal
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumMollusca
ClassBivalvia
OrderUnionoida
FamilyUnionidae
GenusCambarunio
Concept Reference
Watters, G. T. 2018. A preliminary review of the nominal genus Villosa of freshwater mussels (Bivalvia, Unionidae) in North America. Visaya, Supplement (10). 140 pp.
Taxonomic Comments
This species was previously regarded as Villosa iris, but recognized as a separate species and placed in the new genus Cambarunio by Watters (2018).
Conservation Status
Range Extent250-1000 square km (about 100-400 square miles)
Range Extent Comments
This species is known from the Ozark Plateau in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas (USA). Specifically, those streams draining the Salem Plateau region of the Ozark Plateau from the south: White River and its tributaries North Fork, James, Black, and Buffalo rivers, Current River and it's tributaries Jacks Fork, Little Black River, and Logan Creek, and the St. Francis River. This species is only found in the upper reaches within the Salem Plateau and does not occur further downstream (Watters 2018).

A single dead specimen from the Meramee River, Missouri, may be this species, possibly introduced through recent stream capture or may be a mislabeled specimen (Watters 2018).
Ecology & Habitat
Other Nations (1)
United StatesNNR
ProvinceRankNative
ArkansasSNRYes
MissouriS4Yes
Roadless Areas (1)
Arkansas (1)
AreaForestAcres
Little BlakelyOuachita National Forest3,342
References (5)
  1. Freshwater Mollusk Conservation Society (FMCS). 2023. The 2023 checklist of freshwater bivalves (Mollusca: Bivalvia: Unionida) of the United States and Canada. Considered and approved by the Bivalve Names Subcommittee October 2023. Online: https://molluskconservation.org/MServices_Names-Bivalves.html
  2. Graf, D.L. and K.S. Cummings. 2021. A 'big data' approach to global freshwater mussel diversity (Bivalvia: Unionoida), with an updated checklist of genera and species. Journal of Molluscan Studies 87(1):1-36.
  3. MolluscaBase eds. 2024. MolluscaBase. Accessed at https://www.molluscabase.org
  4. Oesch, R.D. 1984a. Missouri Naiades: a Guide to the Mussels of Missouri. Jefferson City, Missouri: Conservation Commission of the State of Missouri. 270 pp.
  5. Watters, G. T. 2018. A preliminary review of the nominal genus Villosa of freshwater mussels (Bivalvia, Unionidae) in North America. Visaya, Supplement (10). 140 pp.