| Signal Crayfish |
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The American signal crayfish was brought to this country to be farmed for food, but has since escaped or been released into freshwaters across the country. It is now present in a large number of river systems and still waters. Where it occurs, the signal crayfish is extremely damaging to the natural environment. It burrows into banks leading to erosion, it eats fish eggs and young, and it wipes out the native white-clawed crayfish, either by competition from the signal crayfish or the disease, crayfish plague, which it carries. Signal crayfish and crayfish plague can be transferred between waterways by canoeing and fishing. Further details for your information, contained in a recent Press Release and an Environment Agency leaflet. For more information you can visit http://www.edenriverstrust.org.uk/white-clawed-crayfish.html Unless the proper precautions are followed American signal crayfish and crayfish plague will be spread to yet more freshwaters and this will be disastrous for our native wildlife. We hope that by raising awareness of the problem, the remaining uninfected waterways and their wildlife can be protected. |