In our neck of the woods: Ozark Streams

Trish and I recently joined our daughter Katie and her family for four days on the Jack's Fork River in southern Missouri. The Jack's Fork River is typical of many of the Ozark rivers of our state, with cool, clear water, scenic rocky bluffs, and nice gravel bars.

Missouri is in the center of the United States, far from any coasts. So, during warm months, Missourians flock to these rivers instead of flocking to the beach. You can swim, snorkel, fish, paddle the river in canoes or kayaks, or just relax on the gravel sand bars and enjoy the scenery. THE FIRST PHOTO was the view from the porch of our cabin. You can see that the sand bar on the far side of the river is a popular destination.

We spent one of our days paddling in a canoe and two kayaks down the river. We had a guide take us in a bus to the put-in spot about five miles upstream, then we floated our way back to the resort, stopping occasionally to swim or eat snacks. Confession: Trish and I dumped our canoe at one point as we tried to navigate a tricky bend in the river... not a big deal, but she did lose her favorite hat to the river! Notice she is hatless in THE SECOND PHOTO.

Missouri has about 110,000 miles of flowing streams and rivers. Because the Ozark region (the southern half of the state and into Arkansas) is an elevated plain of ancient bedrock, the streams here tend to run over gravel instead of mud, which makes the water clear. Many Ozark streams are spring fed, and the water coming from beneath the ground makes the stream water quite cold. This cold, clear water has resulted in numerous fish, amphibians, and invertebrates that are endemic (they aren't found anywhere else in the world) to Ozark streams.

Examples of endemic species are the Ozark hellbender (a large aquatic salamander that is so slimy it has earned the name "snot otter"), the Ozark cavefish (a translucent fish with no eyes that lives in underground springs), the Ozark madtom (a tiny catfish), and many others, including several endemic crayfish, like the longpincered crayfish.

THE THIRD PHOTO is an Ozark hellbender (snot otter). Unfortunately, this is not my photo... I've always wanted to find one of these, but they are rather rare and I haven't been lucky enough.

Of course, many Ozark streams are too small to canoe or swim in. But they still contain an astounding variety of wildlife, and they are beautiful to see. THE FOURTH PHOTO is a stream that runs through our property.

Do you have a favorite stream or river in your area? Do you have a fun story about an experience you've had there?

Photo Credits:
- Ozark hellbender - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Midwest Region, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- All other photos - Stan C. Smith