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Iowa's Smallest, Most Endangered Species

Claudia McGehee Illustration
Local artist Claudia McGehee's depiction of several species, including the Iowa Pleistocene snail, the Rusty Patched Bumblebee, and the Henslow's Sparrow

This program originally aired on June 21, 2018.  

Discussions about endangered species in Iowa often focus on the bigger, showier species that make headlines, like the bald eagle; but there are many species at risk that fly under the radar.

For instance, the Topeka Shiner, a small minnow that lives in Midwestern streams.

On this edition of Talk of Iowa, Charity Nebbe talks with ecologists and biologists who are looking out for Iowa’s smallest, most threatened species, including the Topeka Shiner, the Rusty Patched Bumblebee, the Wood Turtle, and many more.

Guests this hour include: Kraig McPeek, of United States Fish and Wildlife Service; Iowa DNR wildlife biologist Stephanie Shepherd; Jared McGovern, of the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium; and Iowa DNR ecologist, John Pearson.

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Charity Nebbe is the host of IPR's Talk of Iowa