Burrowing crayfish virginia The Virile Crayfish (Orconectes virilis) is another non-native. This study closes the gape in that knowledge to a small degree and starts the first step towards a statewide review of Virginia’s crayfish fauna. The Blue crayfish is a species of burrowing crayfish native to West Virginia, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. Burrowing crayfish help our environment by aerating soil, recycling nutrients among the soil layers, and by providing habitat to other species. A great deal still re- mains unknown about Virginia’s crayfish fauna, its zoogeography, life histories, behaviors, and ecological roles in the State’s streams. [5] The common name refers to the Monongahela River, with the first specimens being collected from Edgewood Park, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. The rusty crayfish’s claws may be small, but its impact on Virginia’s game fish populations as an invasive species could be large. Jan 1, 2010 · The diversity of crayfishes in West Virginia represents a transition between the species-rich southern Appalachian faunas and the depauperate crayfish diversity in the northeastern United States. Jul 23, 2024 · All four of the blue species in West Virginia are burrowing crawfish, meaning you won’t see them in creeks and streams, because they dig holes down to the groundwater to keep their gills wet. One species, Orconectes limosus (Spinycheek Crayfish) is considered extirpated within the Feb 8, 2017 · Blue crayfish at Canaan Valley NWR in Davis, WV.