''Procambarus pictus'', sometimes called the Black Creek crayfish or spotted royal crayfish, is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

crayfish Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans belonging to the infraorder Astacidea, which also contains lobsters. Taxonomically, they are members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea. They breathe through feather-like gills. Some spe ...

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Cambaridae The Cambaridae are the largest of the four families of freshwater crayfish, with over 400 species. Most of the species in the family are native to the United States east of the Great Divide and Mexico, but fewer range north to Canada, and south ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, where it is found in the

Black Creek Black Creek may refer to: Communities In Canada * Black Creek, British Columbia, on Vancouver Island * A neighborhood in Fort Erie, Ontario * Black Creek, Toronto * Black Creek Pioneer Village, a historic site in Toronto In the United States * ...

river system, the

St. Johns River The St. Johns River () is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and is the most significant one for commercial and recreational use. At long, it flows north and winds through or borders 12 counties. The drop in elevation from River s ...

, and the upper Etoniah Creek.

Appearance

This

has yellow to white stripes and spots on a black carapace, with its

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the gut, belly, tummy, midriff, tucky, or stomach) is the front part of the torso between the thorax (chest) and pelvis in humans and in other vertebrates. The area occupied by the abdomen is called the abdominal ...

consisting of black and rust colored bands."Field Guide to the Rare Animals of Florida Florida", Natural Areas Inventory, 2001

References

Cambaridae Endemic fauna of Florida Endemic crustaceans of the United States Freshwater crustaceans of North America Crustaceans described in 1940 Taxa named by Horton H. Hobbs Jr. Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Crayfish-stub