Signal Crayfish

[bluebirdnips]

you need to find the local bod in your area for the fisheries dept they are the ones who give the nod for the green light
try these links

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk...06007/?lang=_e

http://environment-agency.resultspag...yes&w=Crayfish

the last one has the number for the fisheries dept

[TheBigSlick]

Thanks Bluebirdnips

They just passed me back to the EA, who also said it would not be worth the effort of me going down south and that it would be cheaper for me to buy them!!! Pay for them I dont think so. Are they trying to put people off from trapping them for some reason??

[Dipper]

The last thing the the white clawed needs now is a veritable army of perceived do-gooders laying traps, using nets and implementing other crayfish plague speading mechanisms.

Everyone agrees that the Signal issue is out of hand and that not enough is being done to halt its spread... I live in Hampshire and there are precious few sites here with White Clawed populations [and too many with Signals]. However, the reasoning against catching the signals follows the old adage that 'a little bit of knowledge is dangerous'.

How many viewers of the FWord have now been inspired to go out and catch Signals to 'help conserve' [sic] the native crayfish. Whats more important is how many of these people know anything about crayfish ecology, legal issues, identification, etc!

Most of this thread appears to be about "Where can I catch them/how do I cook them" which doesn't sound like an informed debate on how to stop the spread of Signals/crayfish plague. I don't often leave messages on these forums, being a bit of a lurker, and don't intend to offend, but I just had to comment as I fear that a massed culinery assault on the signals has too many bad implications for the White Clawed.

Enjoy your meal!

[Fourwings]

I've been following this thread with interest, Signal Crayfish are an absolute menace, a highly destructive invader that needs at the very least tight control or at the best total erradication.
My son has had an interest in them for quite a while now, he is an angler and our local small river/stream is alive with the monsters. He reguarly catches them by just wading into the shallows and turning over rocks. On several occasions he has got me to go and photograph them for him and I must admit I am now very tempted to try eating some, but the reason that I've posted here is to voice a couple of comments that my son made after reading this thread.
1 - If the water course holds a large population of Signal Crayfish then there will be no native White-clawed left alive to confuse identification with, it seems that there is no way the two can co-exist because of Crayfish plague,competition etc..., this is certainly the case in our local water course as soon as the Signals arrived the natives very quickly vannished!
2 - He says that you would have to be blind to confuse the two anyway, as the edible sized Signals are monsters, up to 4 times larger than natives plus they have a real attitude problem and are highly aggressive. If you stick to only taking large Crayfish above 4 inches long that have a real mean streak then you will be catching Signals and thus riding the British waterways of a most unwelcome invader.

Just in case anyone wants to know what one of these monsters looks like, the image below is of a very large Signal Crayfish that my son caught in July, we measured it at over 9 inches in length and it was non to friendly either!



Happy eating guys

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by Dipper

The last thing the the white clawed needs now is a veritable army of perceived do-gooders laying traps, using nets and implementing other crayfish plague speading mechanisms.

Everyone agrees that the Signal issue is out of hand and that not enough is being done to halt its spread... I live in Hampshire and there are precious few sites here with White Clawed populations [and too many with Signals]. However, the reasoning against catching the signals follows the old adage that 'a little bit of knowledge is dangerous'.

How many viewers of the FWord have now been inspired to go out and catch Signals to 'help conserve' [sic] the native crayfish. Whats more important is how many of these people know anything about crayfish ecology, legal issues, identification, etc!

Most of this thread appears to be about "Where can I catch them/how do I cook them" which doesn't sound like an informed debate on how to stop the spread of Signals/crayfish plague. I don't often leave messages on these forums, being a bit of a lurker, and don't intend to offend, but I just had to comment as I fear that a massed culinery assault on the signals has too many bad implications for the White Clawed.

Enjoy your meal!

t would be pretty hard to mistake the two but more obviously there are hardly any white claws left and you wont get a licence / landowners permission to trap crays if whites are present. They dont tend to mix in rivers since the fungal disease carried by the signals tends to wipe out the whites.

[notbrazil]

Part of me wishes I hadn't started this whole thread. True. If there is a prevalence of Signals then the chances are there are no white-clawed. BUT. Try telling that to a group of 12 yr olds intent on having a laugh by the river. We have a few Red Swamp in S England which are up to 15cm. We have Noble Crayfish the same size. The smaller Spiney-Cheek is not agressive and rare but even so. I thought thouigh, this thread would be seen to have be an informed debate. I've learned quite a bit and thought about it a lot more.

I'm not happy with cages. I'm cool going down with a torch and lifting them out, bagging them and freezing them. I've applied for a license and will catch them for as long as they allow me to and until which time I see fish again.

I personally think they should introduce localised, short-lived native viruses, as they have in Finland, to control. The research I have done has not mentioned any adverse effects on the rivers eco system.

[Signal Slurper]

Hi - New to here, but not Crayfish . .

First - be ABSOLUTEY sure they are Signals. Very dark brown - NO pits in their shell - underside of their claws are RED and underside of their body has a blueish hue.

If so - there are 2 ways to proceed:

1/ Go onto http://www.efishbusiness.co.uk/ and download the FR2 form

This will allow you to apply for a license from the EA to catch/trap crayfish. Identify the species by latin name and state reasons for catching (conservation and personal consumption I suggest). And state the water you will be using. THEN get the water owners permission. Once you get your license back - you are legal and can trap, keep and eat the lil'blighters ! (They taste OK from the Basingstoke canal - which is filthy ! So anywhere with fresher water they should be stonking !). Remember though - ANY you land must NEVER go back into the water - regardless of size.

2/ Whilst doing the above - as you are a diver - carefully catch 5-10 LARGE ones. Place them in a water tight container with FRESH/TAP water for 24 hours at least - preferrably 48 (although mine tend to start dying after 24 hours - maybe chlorine in tap water?). Then - bring a large pan of water to the boil. Add salt and a bouquet garnie - and maybe soem fish stok and garlic. Place the crayfish on ice for approx 30 mins to dull their senses - doesn't make a taste difference, but I find it easier on the soul to humanely kill them. .

Add to the boiling pot and bring back to the boil. Boild for 3 mins - then leave in the water for another 2.

Peel and eat ! Great with garlic and parsley butter - or just lemon mayo !

All this and you are being a conservationalist too !!!!

The Signal Slurper

[honeybee]

I thought they had to be rounded up if found because of the disease they pass on to other aquatic life. We found a small stream fed lake full of them and the EA were very quick to trap them after we reportd it. I have seen on TV where some were caught and taken to a wildlife centre and kept in a tank and I've also heard of them being sold to restaurants.

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by honeybee

I thought they had to be rounded up if found because of the disease they pass on to other aquatic life.

they do in theory but there are so many of them now that it is an augean stables type task and many land owners have pretty much given up trying , hence the EA trapping licence scheme. The disease (well fungus) they carry is lethal to our native crays which is the principal reason for their reduction in numbers.

signals also do significant damage to river banks etc by creating honeycomb like burrows which lead to bank collapse and errosion.

[honeybee]

In that case everyone who sees them should catch them! I know they're quite feisty blighters from catching them in nets. Being vegetarian I wouldn't want them eaten but there's not a lot else you could do with them. I've heard it's most humane to put crabs in the freezer for a hour before cooking as it puts them to sleep.