EdS
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
not wanting to spoil things but all that letter gives you is land owners permission to trap - so don't forget your EA license.
catching signal crayfish
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never fear i have been in contact with them already and i'm in the process of filling in the new form they brought out specifically for trapping crayfish 
it was just the permission from the landowner that has previously hampered my efforts.
http://www.efishbusiness.co.uk/formsandguides/cr1.pdf
it was just the permission from the landowner that has previously hampered my efforts.http://www.efishbusiness.co.uk/formsandguides/cr1.pdf
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fishing is one of the oldest and most reliable ways of gathering food, we've been doing it for many a millenia and it has always been an important part of life that EVERYONE knew how to do and most people had to do to feed their families.
now we arent allowed to do it without paying for a license. stupid modern life.
TJ
now we arent allowed to do it without paying for a license. stupid modern life.
TJ
I think I may have posted this little tidbit once before in another thread, but regardless, I'll do it again. If you are planning on fishing for crayfish the simplest setup is the old fashioned cane (bamboo) pole. Just tie on a length of line sufficient for the depth of the water, no reel necessary at all. On the end of your line, tightly tie a small piece of bacon rind. Be sure it is the rind, and not just a piece of bacon. Bacon rind is incredibly tough and will stand up to many, many crayfish grabbing on with out any loss.
Also, it just seems to be a crayfish magnet. Many people though out the South have fished for crayfish (crawdads) in this manner for many years. I can personally attest that it works remarkably well. When I was a boy and we wanted large numbers of crayfish, fast, we just seined them out using a minnow seine. We never trapped them.
They are not protected here at all, and there is no limit on amount taken. No license or permit is required.
Also, it just seems to be a crayfish magnet. Many people though out the South have fished for crayfish (crawdads) in this manner for many years. I can personally attest that it works remarkably well. When I was a boy and we wanted large numbers of crayfish, fast, we just seined them out using a minnow seine. We never trapped them.
They are not protected here at all, and there is no limit on amount taken. No license or permit is required.
i am now fully legal!!! as promised i got my letter from the relevant guys at the council and i now have my licence from the EA along with all the tags etc for the traps.
went out last night and set two traps, one in the lake and the other in the river. the lake one was empty but i did catch 4 in the river trap so i dont think thats too bad for a first go lol
went out last night and set two traps, one in the lake and the other in the river. the lake one was empty but i did catch 4 in the river trap so i dont think thats too bad for a first go lol
Congratulations on getting the licence etc.
I take it you're doing the trapping night time only so you don't upset the locals
your right in thinking i'm only going out at night, i know what thieving gits some of the local scallies are lol. also i actually made a point of laminating the consent letter and the licence just in case i get stopped. i went out at around 11pm last night thinking that the area would be deserted...... dog walkers everywhere lolCongratulations on getting the licence etc.
I take it you're doing the trapping night time only so you don't upset the locals
i ended up chatting with a couple who were being led about by a couple of irish wolfhounds and they were as good as gold about it all, but i do expect to explain what i am doing every now and again.
although i must admit i did get a bit of hassle whilst walking by the river, namely being divebombed by bats! i did resist the urge to scream like a girl and shout "RABIES!!!"
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Not only criminal but despicable, Cledan!
I realise it was probably done without malicious intent, I have myself introduced pike, perch and trout to waters, but it has been pretty much proved that American signal crayfish have been spread in Scotland by gangs hoping to benefit from sales to restaurants. I can think of no other explanation for the appearance of these aliens to rivers from the Borders to the Highlands.
A number of restaurants have been done for passing them off as lobster or prawns and the only way I can see to eradicate this is to ban retailing them. One thing I am certain of is that encouraging a market in them will do nothing more than guarantee their thriving future.
I'm not so certain that the reluctance to issue permits is entirely to protect other species but rather to protect landowner's rights. There have been at least two Scottish Estates which have refused access to the Environmental Agency. Three years down the line, instead of instantly seeking a compulsory order, they're still discussing what to do about it.
Fishery Protection Orders, initiated for the Tay system, now encompass almost every river in Scotland with a salmon run. And where they were originally supposed to protect salmon stocks, their immediate effect was to eliminate fishing for any species, including trout, grayling and even pike on salmon rivers, as people who had no interest in salmon were soon being arrested under the legislation. I have yet to hear of a single conviction for taking fish, other than migratory salmonidae, from a river under a Protection Order, leading to my belief that the legislation is flawed and results in a monumental waste of Court time and resources!
It was never anything more than a Landowner Protection Racket, and the same legislation will result in your arrest if you even attempt to remove what has been identified as the biggest single threat to salmon stocks ever, the American signal crayfish!
Re-read his post and you'll see that the waters he introduced them too were boiling in a pan. He didn't let them go into the wild, but ate 'em.
Please help me!
I cant seem to get a clear answer do i need a licence to take a group of children with beach nets to the river to cray fish?
We will not be using any traps.
I cant seem to get a clear answer do i need a licence to take a group of children with beach nets to the river to cray fish?
We will not be using any traps.
EdS
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
no you don't but you must have the landowners permission to take any and make sure you know the difference between natives and other species. And the nets must be properly sterilised - not just dried, between visits to prevent the spread of the fungal disease that is a major threat to natives.
many thanks that makes things a lot clearer!
The river is overrun with american signal cray fish and lots of people fish it for cray fish.
Was a little worried about the lack of licence so thanks for the info!
The river is overrun with american signal cray fish and lots of people fish it for cray fish.
Was a little worried about the lack of licence so thanks for the info!
Hi sorry to ask again but i have now been told by the enviroment agency that i do need a licence to take a group of children cray fishing. Am getting a little confused. what is the penalty for cray fishing without a licence? i have run out of time now so will not be able to get a licence.
I'm sure the law is more to do with using set traps above anything else.
As far as anyone is concerned, you were down at the stream trying to catch sticklebacks in a hand net and a crayfish just happened to walk into the net.
Any authority that would act on that and deny kids some quality education needs a 'check up from the neck up'
As the law stands though, you can only remove non-native species and there is a NO RETURN policy on this, they must be killed.
I'm pretty sure that you can't store or transport live non-native species either.
As far as anyone is concerned, you were down at the stream trying to catch sticklebacks in a hand net and a crayfish just happened to walk into the net.
Any authority that would act on that and deny kids some quality education needs a 'check up from the neck up'
As the law stands though, you can only remove non-native species and there is a NO RETURN policy on this, they must be killed.
I'm pretty sure that you can't store or transport live non-native species either.
oh dear... i have done something illegal by accident then! using a sardine to catch...well anything fishy at the weekend i saw a cray and (having never seen one before) got ultra excited and cast on to it. a net and 5 mins later i had it, photographed it, and returned it. i wasnt sure how to tell them apart (i assume the red under the claws is how you tell but to be sure it went back). it was blooming huge! i thought they were just glorified shrimp but it must have been the best part of a foot from claw to tail!
got to try catching them now!
oh, and to those who trap crays, do you get many that are too small to eat? and if so what happens to them?
got to try catching them now!
oh, and to those who trap crays, do you get many that are too small to eat? and if so what happens to them?
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i am planning to ask the correct authorities about using yoyo reels to fish for crays... if you had say 15 of them all along the bank or in a tree you could just sit back and relax and wait for them to come flying in and just net them once they reach you. you could also modify them to have a net attached so when they reel in the crays are netted too...
now i just need to find somewhere local with an infestation... anyone know of anywhere in the kent/east sussex area?
now i just need to find somewhere local with an infestation... anyone know of anywhere in the kent/east sussex area?
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