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Water Quality Specialist Taylor Register got a close look at the Neuse River Waterdog last week during a foray into eastern North Carolina slow, small streams. The Neuse River Waterdog is one of several denizens of the Neuse and Tar-Pamlico watersheds that have a place on the Endangered Species list.

“We sampled from 10 traps at six different sites, and found a couple of crayfish and North American eels, as well as one juvenile waterdog — about 3 inches long and only 2 ounces,” Taylor said. “The survey involved a lot of scrambling through briars and along muddy banks, but it was really cool to talk with the research team and observe the process of weighing, measuring and marking for future identification.”

Waterdog expert Eric Teitsworth, through a North Carolina State University partnership with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, has been conducting research on the Waterdog for the past five years. In 2021, the Waterdog, also known as the Carolina Mudpuppy, was listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.