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Osage County, Missouri

Information provided for informational purposes only

Note: This information is provided for reference purposes only. Although the information provided here was accurate and current when first created, it is now outdated.
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Pesticide Table for the Niangua Darter| Pesticide Table for the Pink Mucket Pearly Mussel
About the Niangua Darter | About the Pink Mucket Pearly Mussel
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Osage County, Missouri map
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Pesticide Table for the Pink Mucket Pearly Mussel (Osage and Gasconade Rivers)

Active Ingredient Product or Trade Name
Propiconazole Tilt, Orbit, Banner

Trade names provided by the University of Missouri Extension Service. For additional information, contact your local University Extension office.

Limitations on Pesticide Use

Limitations
Do not apply within 20 yards from the water's edge (ground application) nor 100 yards from the water's edge (aerial application) within the shaded area(s) shown on the map and 1/2 mile up all streams joining the shaded area(s).
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Pesticide Table for the Niangua Darter

Active Ingredient Product or Trade Name
Chlorpyrifos on Alfalfa Lorsban
Chlorpyrifos: all other uses except on Alfalfa, or as a Termiticide Lorsban, Dursban, Pageant
Carbaryl Sevin, Sevimol
Diazinon Diazinon, D-z-n
Dicofol Kelthane
Disulfoton Di-Syston
Endosulfan Thiodan, Phaser
Esfenvalerate Asana
Isophenphos Oftanol
Phosmet Imidan
Sulprofos Bolstar
Tralomethrin Scout X-tra
Trichlorfon Dylox, Proxol
Trifluralin Treflan, Tri-4, Trific, Trilin, Tri-Scept, Commence, Freedom, Team, Passport, Salute, Snapshot 2.5TG
Fluridone Sonar

Trade names provided by the University of Missouri Extension Service. For additional information, contact your local University Extension office.

Limitations on Pesticide Use

Product or Trade Name Limitations
Lorsban Do not apply 100 yards from the water's edge (ground application) nor 1/4 mile from the water's edge (aerial application) within the shaded area(s) shown on the map.
Sonar Do not apply directly to water within the shaded area(s) shown on the map.
All other products listed Do not apply 20 yards from the water's edge (ground application) nor 100 yards from the water's edge (aerial application) within the shaded area(s) shown on the map and 1/2 mile up all streams joining the shaded areas.
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Niangua darter [Etheostoma nianguae]

The slender Niangua darter is distinguished from all other darters by two small jet-black spots at the base of its tail fin. It has a long head which tapers into a pointed snout. It is a yellowish-olive fish with eight prominent cross-bars on its back, and orange spots scatter its upper sides. This threatened species can grow up to 10 centimeters (4 in) in length. It feeds on aquatic insects and spawns during spring in swift currents over gravel bottoms.

This darter makes its home in the margins of shallow pools with silt-free, gravel or rocky bottoms in clear, medium-sized streams. It is one of 107 different fish species which exist in the Osage Basin of Missouri. In the early 1970's, eight Niangua darter populations were reported along 205 kilometers (128 mi) of the river basin, throughout 12 Missouri counties. The current distribution of the darter has is unkown, but is thought to have decreased considerably from its historic range. However, it is clear that this is a rare species, highly localized in occurrence, and thus is vulnerable to extinction.

The decline of the Niangua darter is largely due to the alteration of its habitat. Reservoir construction along the Osage River has been a large detriment to the the darter, forming insurmountable barriers between tributary streams, limiting the range of the fish and its ability to survive. Highway and bridge construction along the rivers have also impaired the habitat by restricting stream channels and causing sedimentation and silt pollution. The deforestation of the river banks has increased erosion, eliminated shallow pools, and changed the character of the stream flows and floors. The introduction of non-native, predatory species like spotted bass and rock bass for recreational purposes has further threatened the fragile existence of the darter, and of the ecosystem as a whole.

The survival of the Niangua darter is directly linked to the survival of its habitat. Critical habitat has been declared for 145 kilometers (90 miles) of inhabitated stream, and for a 15-meter (50 ft) streambank buffer zone for areas deemed essential to the recovery of this species. Some towns within the range of the Niangua darter are even upgrading their sewage facilities in hopes of enhancing the water quality in the impacted streams.

Matthews, J.R. (ed.). 1990. The Official World Wildlife Fund Guide to Endangered Species, Beacham Publishing Inc, Washington, DC. Vol II, pp. 843-844.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 1989. Niangua Darter Recovery Plan. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Twin Cities, Minnesota.
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Pink mucket pearly mussel [Lampsilis orbiculata]

The Pink mucket pearly mussel has an elliptical shell that is 4 in. long, 2.4 in. wide, and 3 inches high. Young mussels have a yellow to brown shell that is smooth and glossy with green rays and growthmarks, while older specimens are a dull brown. This mussel is a unique long-term breeder in which male pink muckets release sperm in late summer or fall that fertilizes larvae in females which is incubated until the following spring. The Pink mucket pearly mussel inhabits shallow riffles or shoals in areas of gravel, rubbel, or sand substrates that have been swept free of silt by the current. (Silt clogs the siphons in which mussels use to strain water for nutrients.)

In the past, populations of this mussel were found in 25 rivers and tributaries in 11 states. Currently, the Pink mucket is known in 16 rivers and tributaries from 7 states with the greatest concentrations in the Tennessee (TN, AL) and Cumberland (TN, KY) rivers, and in the Osage and Meramec rivers (MO). However, large numbers of this species have never been collected and it has always been considered rare. Smaller populations have been found in the Clinch River (TN), Green River (KY), Kwanawha River (WV), in the Big River, Black and Little Black, Gasconde rivers (MO), and in Current and Spring rivers (AR).

The Pink mucket has declined in range and numbers due to dam and reservoir construction that has changed natural river flow, water temperatures, and oxygen and sediment contents. In addition, heavy loads of silt from strip mining, coal washing, dredging, and logging, along with agricultural runoff have significantly deteriorated water quality essential for mussel reproduction and feeding.

In attempts to restore Pink mucket habitat, the states of Tennessee and Alabama have designated mussel sanctuaries in parts of the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers and have sucessfully reproduced populations at these locations. Recently, live specimens were discovered in the upper Ohio River where the Pink mucket had not been found for 75 years. Scientists associate this to improved water quality in the area and believe that this species could be similarly reintroduced to areas in which the Pink mucket has been extirpated if water quality is restored.

Matthews, J.R. (ed.), The Official World Wildlife Fund Guide to Endangered Species, Beacham Publishing Inc, Washington, DC. Vol. II, pp. 985-986.
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