| Ouachita rock pocketbook | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Bivalvia |
| Order: | Unionoida |
| Family: | Unionidae |
| Genus: | Arkansia |
| Species: | A. wheeleri |
| Binomial name | |
| Arkansia wheeleri Ortmann & Walker, 1912 |
|
Arkansia is a monotypic genus[1] of freshwater mussels in the family Unionidae, the river mussels. The sole species in the genus is Arkansia wheeleri. Its common names are the Ouachita rock pocketbook and Wheeler's pearly mussel.[2] It is native to Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas in the United States, where there are only four or five small, isolated populations.[3] It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.[4]
This mussel is not sexually dimorphic; the sexes appear the same. The shell is somewhat rounded or oval, up to 11.2 centimeters long by 6 wide by 8.7 high. The shell is brown or black, lustrous and iridescent. The nacre is part pink and part white or bluish.[1]
Of the four or five remaining populations, only one is viable. It is located in the Kiamichi River in Oklahoma.[3]
The genus was named for the state of Arkansas, where the mussel was first discovered.[1]