Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Creating the food chain Texas Crayfish questions

From what I've researched, there are hundreds of species of crayfish (crawfish, crawdads, whatever you call them). What is the best species for introducing into a pond/lake in Texas? What kind are available from the different hatcheries? Are certain types illegal to introduce? I may be purchasing some land in northeast Texas that has existing lakes, and was just curious about it. Thanks!

Don't leave me hangin....... :p

I don't now about varieties but I went to LA and picked them up and they have established fairly well in central Texas.

Do you recall what kind they were?

Two varieties of crawfish predominate here and are referred to as the "red swamp crawfish" and the "white river crawfish". I believe that the "red swamp crawfish" is the one that is cultivated in Vermilion Parish and surrounding areas.

man.. picked up 100lb's from Randall's here in south Austin, i still see huge one's around my lake!.. they seem to be doing ok!.. they are dark red.. almost black!.. but huge..i'd say about 4-5" from tip of claw to tail!..

some crawfish fry thing they were having!.. but you could get them live!..

chris.

Christopher, I didn't have your luck (or maybe skill).Mine didn't make it. I bought 20 pounds from the local grocery store and hauled them 70 miles North to my land. I wanted to teach my small Grandchildren about bacon and a string. They were on ice so I dumped them all out and waited for a couple of hours to let them warm up. I put them at the edge of the real small pond and some seemed enthusiastic and some didn't. Any way I got them all in the water. Went back 2 days later and they all seemed to have committed suicide by coon. None left. I called a crawdad farm in Louisiana and he said they were probably half dead when I got them. Also said it could have been water quality and asked if I aerated. In other words he had no idea. I'd still like to try it but I think I'll look for some local ones that haven't been on ice.

not skill.. more luck i'd say!.. mine were alive.. in a huge bag, i had a big 100gal cooler that i filled with water and i dumped two of them in that.. and the other i left in the cardboard box that they came in.. they were "chilled" not frozen... my drive was 1hr. when i dumped em.. yeah i had the same.. alot swam off or walked off.. but i'd say 10-20 per bag were D.O.A. when i dumped.. and yes i'd see your occasional shell on the bank (coons).. but other than that, i've seen their hole's on the edge of the water, and under the feeders, also have seen them in the shallow's walkin around as well.. so i'm hoping (crossing fingers) that they did make it and i'm not tootin my own horn only seein a dozen or so since that stocking!

chris

I think they were the red swamp crawfish since they came from LA.

No luck either ! bought 100 lbs. from a grower in east Tx. big dark red dad's . hauled in igloo coolers . put them in the pond but they did not want to stay in the water , i kept putting them back into the pond , finally left them alone . the next morning it looked like someone { COONS } had a crab feast , have not seen one since , don't know if i will try again . glad to hear some had luck , Harvey

I called LA crawfish and had them ship out 50lbs which arrived alive and kicking. Spread them out across the pond edges in the riprap, and never saw one.....until last spring they were everywhere big and little ones so I guess they just burrowed into the mud and made mad cajun love. I didn't see them that often after mid-summer so maybe its a time thing. I spotted most of them after feeding the fish and some of the chow would wash up on the bank and they would crawl out from under the rocks to eat.

After contacting several more La. Crawfish suppliers, I have come to the conclusion that mine had probably been in the store 3 or 4 days and were stressed. Next time, I will have them shipped directly from the crawdad farmer.

I just came in from walking part of the shore and have seen several crawfish near the banks. Don't know if it's a weather or breeding thing. If I can only keep my lab from eating them.

Dave , I don't know for sure but am told that the gill's on the dads can dry out and that they will die . need to keep them wet untill placing in the pond . Harvey

Opps forgot , I kept mine wet but still had no luck . Harvey

In early spring we siene crawdads out of bar ditches with a long handled small mesh dip net, for bait.
I've thought about trying to establish them in my ponds. We have lots of limestone rocks lining the banks with lots of places for them to hide; but our soil is sandy, they are supposed to prefer clay. I have seen chimneys on the property a time or two, during wet conditions.
Also , I have heard that placing hay bales along the shore can better help them to establish.

You fellows who aren't sure if you have a forage base of crawfish in your ponds, stocked or not should be monitoring the contents of the harvested fishes stomachs. I used to trout fish religiously and every fish I kept to eat was cleaned at the creeek to determine wha thtey were eating, it was a 50/50 thing to find a minnow or a crawfish in nearly every stomach on a good stream with lots of gravel and Craw habitat. Just a thought. I put a couple hundred young ones in my pond last summer but I figure the perch just made a meal out of them as I hadn't put in enough habitat first, next time will be different.

I've messed around with crayfish in tanks a little and learned some things from my many, many mistakes:
- If there's not enough oxygen in the water, they'll leave the water. They can live at least overnight without being immersed in water.
- They'll shed their shells (molt) a few times a summer. At that point, they're pretty immobile and and unprotected, so there's a good chance they'll get picked off if there's not a lot of rip-rap to hide in.
- DO NOT PUT "RUSTY CRAYFISH" IN YOUR POND. They'll make it unlivable for fish.

When you guys put your crayfish in the water do you let the cooler temper (sit in the lake and adjust to the lake temp.) before you dump the crayfish in? I don't know how resilient crayfish are, but I know that goldfish will die if they get too sharp a temperature change.

What do the rusty crayfish do to your pond that makes it unlivable for fish?

I have a large number of crayfish in my pond but I have no idea what kind they are.

Should I be concerned?

Hey Jim, if you haven't heard of them before they're probably not a problem. I think most of the states where they're a problem put advisories in their fishing bulletins. This site gives their range and pictures:
http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/SpFactSheet.asp?SpeciesID=214
Look for the big rusty spot on the side.
From what I understand, rusties will do the following:
- Consume all or most of the plants in a lake
- Outcompete other crayfish (for food and cover), causing them to die off
- Fight off fish to the point that fish can't really rely on them as a forage species.
In short, rusties have turned healthy lakes with normal fish populations into oxygen-depleted ones with little plant cover, few fish, and a whole lot of each other. On the upside, they're just as edible to people as other crayfish and grow bigger than lots of other species.

JimK,

For more information on Rusty Crawfish, have a look at the post by TyW33 (under this same topic, Creating the Food Chain) titled Rusty Crawfish. He has a link to another good article on the subject.

Russ

Thanks Russ and JL1.

I just finished reading the information in the links from both sources. The crayfish in my pond are making a big mess burrowing into the clay banks. According to what I just read, most rusty crayfish don't burrow. Also, I am in south central PA, which seems to be a less likely area. So mayby I'm OK.

I am going to catch a few when I get a chance and look for the rust spots. I will also try to identify them by their claws(according to the info in the links).

I did not introduce these into my pond. Apparently the species I have are native to the area. But I sure do have a lot of them and big ones too.