North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission

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National Range: Presently known only from NC in the upper Little Tennessee River basin.

NC Physiographic Region(s): Blue Ridge Mountains

River Basin(s): Little Tennessee

Adult Habitat: Predominately, margins of relatively high gradient streams with substrates dominated by boulder and cobble, found frequently beneath boulders.  (Cooper and Schofield 2002, Simmons and Fraley 2008)

Reproductive Season: unknown; Form I males seen in October and November

Species associates: C. (C.) bartonii, C. (C.) georgiae

Conservation status: Not protected

Identification references: Cooper and Schofield 2002

Taxonomic Description:

• body shape: subcylindrical, moderately depressed dorsoventrally
• coloration: incomplete dark saddle superimposed on tan, grayish-green, or mottled background; lateral areas dark,with pale granules and streaks. Other color variations exist.
• spines: lacking; branchiostegal and cervical spines reduced to rounded tubercles if present; 5-7 tubercles or spines on the ventral surface of carpus
• rostrum: thickened margins; moderately to strongly convergent; occasionally subparallel from base to base of acumen; margins abruptly thinning, then broadly concave and more strongly converging to dorsally directed apical tubercle.
• areola: broad, densely punctuate;usually with 5-6 punctations across narrowest part
• chelae: palm very inflated; mesial margin of palm has a row of 7-9 large, semierect tubercles, subtended dorsally by a row of 2-4 smaller tubercles;fingers short, stout, and slightly gaping if at all; strong longitudinal ridges
• other characteristics: suborbitalangle obtuse to subacute with rounded or acute tubercle.
• form I male gonopod: central projection short, not tapered, curved over 90° to plane of shaft with proximally directed deep subapical notch; mesial processvery long, inflated at base, tapered and attenuate toward caudal end, tip acute.

 

Crayfish Regulations (PDF)

According to NC General Statue and NCWRC Regulation, it is unlawful to stock any fish (including shellfish and crustaceans) into public waters without a WRC permit.  It is also unlawful to transport, purchase, possess, or sell any live individuals of virile crayfish (Orconectes (Gremicambarus) virilis), rusty crayfish (Orconectes (Procericambarus) rusticus), Australian “red claw” crayfish (Cherax quadricarinatus) or other species of “giant” crayfish species.

The following illustration is reproduced from:

Cooper, J.E., and K.A. Schofield. 2002. Cambarus (Jugicambarus) tuckasegee, a new species of crayfish (Decapoda: Cambaridae) from the Little Tennessee River basin, North Carolina. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 115(2):371-381.

 

 

Fig. 1   Cambarus (Jugicambarus) tuckasegee, new species (all from holotypic male, form I, except E, F, from morphotypic male, form II; H, from paratopotypic male, form I; J, from allotypic female). A, laternal aspect of carapace; B, E, mesial aspect of left gonopod (first pleopod); C, F, H, lateral aspect of left gonopod; D, dorsal aspect of carapace; G, caudal aspect of in situ gonopods; I, epistome; J, annulus ventralis and postannular selerite; K, antennal scale; L, dorsal aspect of distal podomeres of right cheliped (tips of fingers missing), Scale lines equal 2 mm.