tees signal crawfish

[MickMcC]

I have often seen foreign migrants setting creels for crayfish in Greatham Creek off Cowpen Bewely ecology park and the authorities don't seem to bother them. They think you don't know what they are doing. They speaky no Englise when asked. Same as Cockle collectors at the South Gare.

There is a legit way to trap Signal Crayfish but as usual the powers that be have made it so onerous that its not worth the effort. If these crayfish were on open licence then at least they could be kept in check as opposed to just taking over the country with no hindrance. I fished Grassholme reservoir earlier this year and its knee deep in them, you can't even leave your catch in the water to cool as your catch bag is full of crayfish in 20 mins. Every bait comes back full of claw marks or missing in minutes and the sea anglers tell tale twitch of nipping crabs is constant.

Only a matter of time before Signal crayfish have replaced our native white clawed crayfish, then it will be too late.

[Alfie]

River Blyth is now full of them. Gamekeeper put a dead grey squirrel in a keepnet and next day it was full. He's applied for a license to catch them and told it could take 2 years. What a farce.

[Boga]

Under the Wildife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended), it is an offence
to release, or allow to escape, any non-native species into the wild in the UK
except under licence.
The Prohibition of Keeping of Live Fish (Crayfish) Order 1996 (as amended),
made under the Import of Live Fish (England and Wales) Act 1980, makes it
an offence to keep any crayfish in England and Wales, except under licence
(with specific exemption areas for signal crayfish).

Here's the full quote.

"guidance notes
It is an offence under section 3(1) of the Import of Live
Fish (England and Wales) Act 1980, under which the
Prohibition of Keeping of Live Fish (Crayfish) Order 1996,
as amended, is made, to keep non-native crayfish without
a valid licence, with the exception of signal crayfish kept
in exempted areas (see below).
No licence is required to keep signal crayfish (Pacifastacus
leniusculus) in areas of England and Wales where extensive
feral populations have become established. "

Maybe that makes it a little clearer.

[Boga]

River Blyth is now full of them. Gamekeeper put a dead grey squirrel in a keepnet and next day it was full. He's applied for a license to catch them and told it could take 2 years. What a farce.

That's odd, it states -

"We require 20 working days to process your application. However, we will aim to do it within 10 days. This may take
longer if the water you plan to trap on has a conservation
designation such as an SSSI, as we may need to consult with
other organisations. "

[Boga]

Here is the official response I received today from the Environment Agency.


"The trapping of crayfish is only allowed depending on a number of factors; including, location and reason for trapping.

Trapping in the North of England & Wales

The use of traps to catch crayfish in the North of England & Wales (unless for scientific research, conservation, or fishery management) will normally be refused for the following reasons:

Increased risk of spreading crayfish plague and other fish diseases

The risk of capture and or harming native crayfish

Small scale trapping of Signal crayfish has been shown to increase rather than

decrease their population size*

*Scientific evidence shows large males are preferentially attracted to traps, while females and small males are trap-shy. As large male signal crayfish cannibalise juveniles they have the effect of keeping total population numbers down. In areas where trapping has occurred, the removing of these large males has resulted in a dramatic increase of overall signal
numbers in the years after trapping.

Trapping in South of England

The use of traps in southern England to catch crayfish for personal consumption or as a business enterprise is likely to be approved. However, our preference is for members of the public to use a rod and line because:

Traps can impact on non-target species – water voles, otters, amphibians

Rod licence revenue is invested into improving angling and fisheries management"



There it is folks, it makes sense to me.