Crayfish

[bilko]

Watching the 'F word ' last night with gordon Fu**ing Ramsey for the first time and a mate of his showed how easy it was to catch crayfish.
As a rule i don't realy like shellfish but if i was very hungry these might be ideal in a survival situation. The guy seemed to think that a vast majority of our ponds, rivers and streams are being overrun with the american crayfish which also harms riverbanks. When the water reaches 10 degrees or lower they burrow into the bank damadging it.
Anyway, make or buy a trap and bung in a fairly big fish that has been cut open. Leave the trap overnight as crayfish primarily hunt overnight. The next morning the trap was teeming with crayfish.
Best bit was the ease of cooking. 1 large pot of boiling water and bung them all in for 2 and a half minutes. They'll turn red.
Anyone catch any?

 

[Silverback]

Caught some when ledgering - you can always tell as the swing tip rhythmically jerks back and forth as the little b*stards walk off with the bait. I asolutely love the taste of em and if they make it to the bank they never go back in

 

[dwardo]

Lived in OZ for a bit and they used to love fresh water "yabbies" i rekon they were about the same as our crayfish although i havent seen one of our native ones up close.

If they are the same they should be lovely and im sure someone here will clarify this for us

 

[moduser]

I'd like to point you all to a recent threads on this subject as it highlights the does, don'ts and can'ts of the American Signal Crayfish, and yes they taste wonderful

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showthread.php?t=11503&highlight=crayfish

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showthread.php?t=15024&highlight=crayfish

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showthread.php?t=14476&highlight=crayfish

david

 

[bilko]

Thanks moduser

 

[Ketchup]

Lived in OZ for a bit and they used to love fresh water "yabbies" i rekon they were about the same as our crayfish although i havent seen one of our native ones up close.

If they are the same they should be lovely and im sure someone here will clarify this for us

I'm affraid yabbies (Cherax spp.) are much tastier that European (or adventive american - "turkish") crayfish. Local Eu species mostly taste like mud. The sauce of course makes up for the lack of taste.

 

[torjusg]

Local Eu species mostly taste like mud.

I bought some in the shop at one time as crayfish are very rare here. I had heard all sorts of nice things about them, but yes, they tasted like mud. Would leaving them alive in clear water for a few days, help removing that taste?

 

[Ketchup]

I'm afraid not.
If you're used to lobster or prawn (scampi, langoustine: Nephrops norvegicus) and other shrimplike seafood, all freshwater crayfish taste bland/muddy, except for some Australian species (yabby and especially marron)

 

[leon-b]

how could i make a trap for these ?
and would it be legal to leave it in my local river overnight ?
leon

 

[bilko]

Leon, take a look at the links supplied earlier as the legalities of catching, storing and moving crayfish are all covered.
basically if you have a fishing license you are allowed to catch as many american crayfish as you want WITH A ROD but permission must be granted for using a trap. Once taken from the water it is illegal to throw back any crayfish.

 

[leon-b]

ho would i catch one with a rod, what bait would i use ?
leon

 

[atross]

http://forums.outdoors-magazine.com/viewtopic.php?t=1772
Is a great link for Crayfish info

 

[atross]

Another good site
http://www.crayfishking.com/index.htm

 

[WhichDoctor]

Something I remember hearing about catching crayfish is that the american crayfish carries a fungal plague that it is immune to but the native crayfish isn't. If you catch the american ones somewhere and then go fishing somewhere ells that doesn't have them, you mite introduce the plague vier spores on your clothing or footwear. Have know idea if this is true but I herd it somewhere (probably BBC or something).

 

[atross]

^It is true and you must disinfect all kit to prevent the spread!

Just found this link
http://www.defra.gov.uk/fish/freshwater/crayfish.htm

 

[riddleofsteel]

You can make a nifty mudbug trap by using a 2 or 3 liter plastic soda or water bottle.
Cut off the narrow screw on end just at the point it thins out to make the bottle. Cut it close to the neck to leave a narrow opening. Now cut the top 1/3 or the bottle off. You will be left with a large plastic cup and a large plastic funnel. Turn the funnel part around and insert it into the cup portion. Make a few holes around the junction of the two and secure with twine, wire or cable ties.
At this point it helps to make a few small holes in the cup portion so it will fill up with water quickly. The trick is to make the only hole the crawfish can go thru the one big hole in the funnel. I usually bait my traps with bread, bacon or meat scraps. Fish parts, dead minnows or worms work as well.
Tie a string or cordage to the trap and put it into the creek or pond of your choice. Overnight works well and the next morning you will be rewarded with one or more crawfish.
On one of our bushcraft outings we were foraging for food and I dug up a bunch of worms from under some forest leaves. I chopped them up and from the look on my 13 year old son's face I am sure he thought I intended to eat them. When I started carefully splitting willow limbs into slats and weaving double cone traps he started laughing. He went straight to get some cat tail leaves and we filled in the gaps in my traps by interweaving basket style. I weighted down the trap in a clear stream on our property and the next morning we had 5 large crays, handful of minnows, and small catfish busy eating our breakfast when we pulled it in.

 

[TeeDee]

I remember seeing an online map of where & which rivers American Signal Crayfish are know to be present in.

Anyone got a link to it as I can't find it.

I'm looking to apply for a licence for trapping but am not sure if they have made it down to the South West ( near Exeter ).

 

[bopdude]

Yeah I had the map disappear on me, not sure if it was taken down or not ?

EDIT: just found this one

http://foragedfoods.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Map-of-Signal-Crayfish-Locations-UK.jpg

 

[Mesquite]

I remember seeing an online map of where & which rivers American Signal Crayfish are know to be present in.

Anyone got a link to it as I can't find it.

I'm looking to apply for a licence for trapping but am not sure if they have made it down to the South West ( near Exeter ).

Here's one

https://species.nbnatlas.org/species/NHMSYS0000377494

 

[bopdude]

Here's one

https://species.nbnatlas.org/species/NHMSYS0000377494

I like that one, the march North is going strong for them, wasn't nearly as bad iirc