Bayou-Diversity: Nature and People in the Louisiana Bayou Country

2. Bayou-Fauna: Animals in a Place of Bayous

2 Bayou-Fauna Animals in a Place of Bayous Bear chewed up permit station on Mill Rd. at 10-Lick line; [I] caught a 3' canebrake rattler & released him —KO Field Diary, 10 June 1986—Tensas River NWR Law Enforcement patrol Mollicy early—saw 3 otters, bald eagle, buck, coyotes, lots of raptors & flight ducks —KO Field Diary, 21 October 2003 More than 450 species of wild birds have been recorded in Loui­ si­ ana. From bayous in wetlands to hilltops in uplands, birds blanket our landscape, settling into niches as varied as a barren spit of sand to an old, fungus-infested pine. Some are static, completing their lifecycle in back yards, but most participate in the rhythmic arcanum of migration, a behavior that mocks rational thought. Even before John James Audubon painted bayou birds to fame they were the ornaments of Loui­ si­ ana fauna. Birds in their infinite diversity continue to embellish our imaginations. About 150 species of freshwater fishes swim the bayous, rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, sloughs, oxbows, and marshes of Loui­ si­ ana. They are as diverse as their habitats. A few are familiar as gamefish, and others were once components of a thriving commercial fishing industry. Most, though, are unknown to the average citizen and yet 40 Bayou-Fauna: Animals in a Place of Bayous / 41 fill important niches in the web of life just below the surface of our consciousness. The term “herps” is a colloquial derivative of “herpetofauna,” which refers to the group of animals consisting of amphibians and reptiles. Loui­ si­ ana bayous and swamps often evoke images, usually negative, of an abundance of these creatures. In fact, about 130 species of herps are found in Loui­ si­ ana, including 27 frogs, 22 salamanders , 14 lizards, 27 turtles, 39 snakes, and 1 crocodilian. The numbers vary slightly according to which herpetologist does the counting. Herps are ubiquitous in Loui­ si­ ana although some species have very specialized niches. Generally misunderstood and often persecuted, herps play important roles in the natural world. Loui­ si­ ana wild mammals run the gamut of diversity and include bears, bats, deer, dolphins, and many creatures in between that nurse their young. Some species are well known with economic and recreational value (e.g., deer, furbearers); others are virtually unknown by most people (e.g., bats, shrews). All are integral components of the various ecosystems across the state and often involved in the checks and balances, vital interspecific links and strands, which maintain the natural world. They are spineless. They have absolutely no backbone. Many are blood-sucking leaches and parasites of the worst kind. Some have an uncanny ability to make our lives miserable, but we need them. No, I am not referring to shady politicians here but rather those creatures known as invertebrates. Invertebrates are all the types of animals that lack backbones. They are by far the most numerous animals on Earth. Two million species have been identified, which make up 98 percent of all known animals. They inhabit every habitat on the planet, from tropical forests to alpine tundra, from the depths of caves to seabed mud. They drift the ocean currents as plankton and ride desert winds as the aerial dust of life. Most invertebrates are small, some as tiny as bacteria. Others like the giant squid can be 60 feet long and weigh 4,000 pounds. One type of ribbon worm has the diameter of a pencil and is 180 feet long. 42 / Biota: The Plant and Animal Life of a Particular Region Invertebrates are divided into several groups, of which arthropods is the largest. It consists of insects, like flies, cicadas, moths, earwigs, fleas, cockroaches, bees, beetles, dragonflies, and termites; crustaceans, such as lobsters, crawfish, shrimp, crabs, barnacles, and pill bugs; and spiders and their kin. Another important assemblage is the mollusks, which include clams, mussels, snails, seaslugs , octopus, and squid. Centipedes and millipedes are thrown into the melee for good measure. Other major groups include sponges, jellyfish, echinoderms like starfish, and several groups of worms. Some invertebrates have less than pleasant relationships with people, at least from the human perspective. A few cause parasitic diseases in humans and domestic animals. Others are agricultural pests, destroying plant crops. Wasps, mosquitoes, ticks, and jellyfish are just aggravating to most folks. But we can’t live without them. Invertebrates occupy several tiers on the food web, including consumers, producers, and...