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SFS Annual Meeting

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MAPPING THE CURRENT RANGE OF SPECIES IN THE GENUS MACROBRACHIUM ACROSS TEXAS

Four species of genus Macrobrachium are found in the freshwaters of the coterminous United States: Macrobrachium ohione (endemic), M. carcinus, M. acanthurus, and M. olfersii. Once widespread, they have been functionally extirpated from the majority of their range. However, they are still abundant in parts of coastal Texas. Macrobrachium undergo annual migrations from the estuaries to inland waters. Gravid females migrate to the estuary to release eggs and then juveniles migrate upstream into freshwater ecosystems. Establishing baseline information on the range and migratory habits for the genus in North America is important to understand their ecological role and the consequences of their severe range retraction. We performed monthly surveys in three Texas coastal plain streams with Macrobrachium populations to track migratory movement of the fauna. To assess the species ranges, we assembled all available records from published papers and archived specimens collected by the University of Texas Biodiversity Center into a spatio-temporal database of occurrences. Archived specimens were re-identified in lab to confirm taxonomic identity. These observations were then georeferenced and appended to the National Hydrography Dataset Version 2 to develop a river network range for each species.

Alexander Solis (Primary Presenter/Author), VIMS, alexander.tr.solis@gmail.com;


Christopher Patrick (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS), cpatrick@vims.edu;