Freshwater mollusk resources
- INHS Mollusk Collection Database
- Field Guide to Freshwater Mussels of the Midwest
- Aquatic mollusca of Illinois
- Threatened & endangered species in Illinois
- Freshwater mollusk projects at INHS
- Freshwater mollusk bibliography database
- Freshwater Mollusk Conservation Society
- American Malacological Society
- Conchologists of America
- The MUSSEL Project
Fisheries links
- INHS Fish Collection Database
- Fishes of Illinois (with distribution maps)
- Threatened & endangered species in Illinois
- American Fisheries Society
- American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists
- North American Native Fishes Association
Supporting non-game research
Non-game species are wild species that cannot be legally taken for sport, fur, food, or profit. They are an integral component in the balance of nature and represent more than 80% of the vertebrate fauna. Many of these species are on the decline or thought to be at risk. Preventing species from becoming endangered is important not only from an ecological perspective (e.g., loss of a seemingly insignificant species can cause other animals to decline), but also because a federally endangered species listing has the potential to influence how public and private land is managed. Unlike game species research, which is funded from license fees and taxes on guns, ammunition, archery equipment and fishing tackle, non-game species often do not receive much financial support. You can assist non-game research by donating to a worthy group. Below are three that I support (links to respective websites are embedded in group description and all donations can be claimed on your next year’s federal and state tax returns).
- The Illinois Wildlife Preservation Fund Grant Program is designed to preserve, protect, perpetuate, and enhance non-game wildlife and native plant resources of Illinois through preservation of a satisfactory environment and an ecological balance. In the 25+ years of the program, a combined total of over 1,000 projects have been funded throughout the state through check-off donations totaling over $5 million. The funds have been used to support projects ranging from habitat enhancements to species restoration to educating Illinois school children and citizens about the importance of resource conservation.
- Dr. R. Weldon (Larry) Larimore, a retired scientist with the Illinois Natural History Survey, is a pioneer of aquatic ecology and was a charter member of numerous organizations including the North American Benthological Society and the Illinois Chapter of the American Fisheries Society. To honor this renowned scientist, family and friends of Dr. R. Weldon Larimore, the Illinois Natural History Survey, and the University of Illinois Foundation established the R. Weldon Larimore / Jordan Creek Endowment Fund in 2002. The endowment provides a scholarship to help support an aspiring student at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign or beginning research professional at the Illinois Natural History Survey to take up the spirit of Dr. Larimore and conduct research focusing on Jordan Creek and/or other Midwestern warmwater streams.
- Conservation Fisheries, Inc. is dedicated to the preservation of aquatic biodiversity and ecosystems in the southeastern United States that have been eliminated because of pollution or habitat destruction. CFI concentrates on the conservation and recovery of rare freshwater fishes using captive propagation, habitat assessment, and low impact monitoring techniques.