Oklahoma currently has 29 recognized species of crayfish. We introduce the thirtieth documented species, Cambarus ludovicianus, and use Maxent ecological niche modeling to predict potentially suitable habitat based on known distributions throughout its range. We used the Maxent algorithm with and without points of occurrence in Oklahoma to examine if the niche model predicts suitable habitat in Oklahoma where we found C. ludovicianus. Occurrences in Oklahoma were not predicted present based on the projection of the model using the previously known distribution of the species, except for the location of the Red Slough Wildlife Management Area in southeastern Oklahoma. However, including the new records in the model changes the predicted suitable habitat for the species in Oklahoma, encompassing all new locations and a large portion of eastern Oklahoma. We suggest that eastern Oklahoma and Texas represent the western edge of the range of C. ludovicianus. Further surveys in the field for C. ludovicianus at the limits of its range are required to understand detailed requirements of its habitat.
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1 December 2013
Predicting and Mapping the Potential Distribution of the Painted Devil Crayfish, Cambarus ludovicianus Faxon (Decapoda: Cambaridae)
Reid L Morehouse,
Monica Papeş,
Michael Tobler
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The Southwestern Naturalist
Vol. 58 • No. 4
December 2013
Vol. 58 • No. 4
December 2013