
Arkansas River Basin
A major tributary of the Mississippi River, the Arkansas River originates in the Rocky Mountains in New Mexico and Colorado, and flows through Kansas and Oklahoma before joining the Mississippi River in Arkansas. The Arkansas River Basin is the largest river basin in the southern Great Plains. The river and its tributaries provide critical water resources for agricultural irrigation, hydropower generation, and public water supply as well as habitats for numerous listed species (Yang et al. 2023).
Map of the HUC 6 watershed sub-basins in the Arkansas River drainage basin that were used for this analysis. Click on the polygons to obtain information about listed species by taxa in each HUC 6 watershed (as of 23 January 2025). Or click here to open the map online.
The following is a summary of the listed species and critical habitats found in the Arkansas River basin. Click on the blocks below to obtain more detailed information about the listed species and critical habitats in each HUC 6 (as of 23 January 2025).
The following table is a summary of listed species and critical habitats by taxa in the Arkansas River Basin.
Amphibians

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Eastern Hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis) (E)
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Ozark Hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis bishopi) (E)
Clams

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Arkansas Fatmucket (Lampsilis powellii) (T)
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Curtis Pearlymussel (Epioblasma florentina curtisii) (E)
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Louisiana Pearlshell (Margaritifera hembeli) (T)
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Louisiana Pigtoe (Pleurobema riddellii) (Proposed T) ( proposed CH)
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Neosho Mucket (Lampsilis rafinesqueana) (T) (CH)
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​Ouachita Fanshell (Cyprogenia sp. cf. aberti) (T)
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Ouachita Rock Pocketbook (Arcidens wheeleri) (E)
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Pink Mucket (Lampsilis abrupta) (E)
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Rabbitsfoot (Quadrula cylindrica cylindrica) (T) (CH)
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Salamander Mussel (Simpsonaias ambigua) (Proposed E)
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Scaleshell Mussel (Leptodea leptodon) (E)
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Snuffbox Mussel (Epioblasma triquetra) (E)
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Speckled Pocketbook (Lampsilis streckeri) (E)
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Spectaclecase mussel (Cumberlandia monodonta) (E)
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Texas Fawnsfoot (Truncilla macrodon) (T)
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Texas Heelsplitter (Potamilus amphichaenus) (Proposed E)
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Western Fanshell (Cyprogenia aberti) (T) (CH)
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Winged Mapleleaf (Quadrula fragosaIa) (E)
Fishes

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Arkansas River Shiner (Notropis girardi) (T) (CH)
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Bonytail (Gila elegans) (E)
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Colorado Pikeminnow (Ptychocheilus lucius) (E)
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Greenback Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii stomias) (T)
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Humpback Chub (Gila cypha) (T)
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Leopard Darter (Percina pantherina) (T) (CH)
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Neosho Madtom (Noturus placidus) (T)
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Niangua Darter (Etheostoma nianguae) (T)
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Ozark Cavefish (Amblyopsis rosae) (T)
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Pallid Sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus) (E)
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Peppered Chub (Macrhybopsis tetranema) (E) (CH)
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Razorback Sucker (Xyrauchen texanus) (E)
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Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii virginalis) (C)
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Sharpnose Shiner (Notropis oxyrhynchus) (E)
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Smalleye Shiner (Notropis buccula) (E)
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Topeka Shiner (Notropis topeka) (E)
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Yellowcheek Darter (Etheostoma moorei) (E) (CH)
Insects

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​American Burying Beetle (Nicrophorus americanus) (T)
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Hine's Emerald Dragonfly (Somatochlora hineana) (E) (CH)
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Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) (C)
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Silverspot (Speyeria nokomis nokomis) (T)
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Uncompahgre Fritillary Butterfly (Boloria acrocnema) (E)
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Western Regal Fritillary (Argynnis idalia occidentalis) (Proposed T)
Reptiles

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Alligator Snapping Turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) (Proposed T)
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American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) (SAT)
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Louisiana Pinesnake (Pituophis ruthveni) (T) (proposed CH)
Birds

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Eastern Black Rail (Laterallus jamaicensis spp. jamaicensis) (T)
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Golden-cheeked Warbler (Setophaga chrysoparia) (E)
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Gunnison Sage-grouse (Centrocercus minimus) (T)
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Ivory-billed Woodpecker (Campephilus principalis) (E)
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Lesser Prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) (T)
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Mexican Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis lucida) (T) (CH)
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Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) (T)
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Red-cockaded Woodpecker (Picoides borealis) (E)
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Rufa Red Knot (Calidris canutus rufa) (T)
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Southwestern Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus) (E) (CH)
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Whooping Crane (Grus americana) (E) (CH)
Crustaceans

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Benton County Cave Crayfish (Cambarus aculabrum) (E)
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Big Creek Crayfish (Faxonius peruncus) (T)
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Hell Creek Cave Crayfish (Cambarus zophonastes) (E)
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St. Francis River Crayfish (Faxonius quadruncus) (T)
Flowering Plants

Ute Ladies'-Tresses, B. Hotze/USFWS; https://www.fws.gov/banner/ute-ladies-tresses
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Geocarpon minimum (T)
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Harperella (Ptilimnium nodosum) (E)
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Holy Ghost Ipomopsis (Ipomopsis sancti-spiritus) (E)
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Mead's Milkweed (Asclepias meadii) (T)
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Missouri Bladderpod (Physaria filiformis) (T)
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Neches River Rose-mallow (Hibiscus dasycalyx) (T)
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Pecos Sunflower (Helianthus paradoxus) (T)
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Penland Alpine Fen Mustard (Eutrema penlandii) (T)
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Pondberry (Lindera milissifolia) (E)
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Texas Prairie Dawn-flower (Hymenoxys texana) (E)
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Ute Ladies'-tresses (Spiranthes diluvialis) (T)
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Virginia Sneezeweed (Helenium virginicum) (T)
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Western Prairie Fringed Orchid (Platanthera praeclara) (T)
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Wright's Marsh Thistle (Cirsium wrightii) (T)
Mammals

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Black-footed Ferret (Mustela nigripes) (E)
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Canada Lynx (Lynx canadensis) (T)
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Gray Bat (Myotis grisescens) (E)
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Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) (EXPN)
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Indiana Bat (Myotis sodalis) (E) (CH)
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New Mexico Meadow Jumping Mouse (Zapus hudsonius luteus) (E) (CH)
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Northern Long-eared Bat (Myotis septentrionalis) (E)
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Ozark Big-eared Bat (Corynorhinus townsendii ingens) (E)
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Preble's Meadow Jumping Mouse (Zapus hudsonius preblei) (T) (CH)
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Texas Kangaroo Rat (Dipodomys elator) (Proposed E) (CH)
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Tri-colored Bat (Perimyotis subflavus) (Proposed E)
Lead USFWS Offices in the Arkansas River Basin
Arkansas Ecological Services Field Office
110 South Amity Suite 300
Conway, AR 72032-8975
​(501) 513-4470
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Colorado Ecological Services Field Office
1 Denver Federal Center Bldg 25, Room W1911
Denver, CO 80225-001
(303) 236-4773​
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Kansas Ecological Services Field Office
​2609 Anderson Avenue
Manhattan, KS 66502-2801
(785) 539-3474
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Louisiana Ecological Services Field Office
​200 Dulles Drive
Lafayette, LA 70506
(337) 291-3100
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Oklahoma Ecological Services Field Office
​9014 East 21st Street
Tulsa, OK 74129-1428
(918) 581-7458
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New Mexico Ecological Services Field Office
2105 Osuna Road NE
Albuquerque, NM 87113-1001
(505) 346-2525​
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Texas Coastal and Central Plains Ecological Services Fort Worth Sub-office
17629 El Camino Real, Suite 211
Houston, TX 77058-3051
​(817) 277-1100
​