Signal Crayfish

[harrycatcat 31]

Pack from Environment Agency came today telling me how to apply for a licence to catch crayfish.

I dont think that I will bother. Feck that I will buy em from Sainsburys cos it would take a month to figure out all the forms and shit.

Never mind.

 

is there season regards 2 flavour

 

dont know mate I did not take it any further

[Hob&Jill 258]

Feck getting a licence, just dont get caught

 

A well known fishery in the south east that I work at has a big problem with the b*****ds at the moment. They have about 35 traps around the main lake

[Guest little_lloyd]

Catch em all the time when im at a local carp lake!!

 

Theres a stream running into it from the hills and its swamped with crayfish, I always end up bringing bags and bagds of them home with me!!

 

But i keep it quiet

[Tyla 3,179]

Feck getting a licence, just dont get caught

 

A well known fishery in the south east that I work at has a big problem with the b*****ds at the moment. They have about 35 traps around the main lake

 

Tell me where the fishery is and i promise not to get caught!

[Guest bigredbusa]

ive had a trap out on the ouse for about a week , checking it every day and havent caught toffee . is there any in the ouse ?

[boris b 1]

ive had a trap out on the ouse for about a week , checking it every day and havent caught toffee . is there any in the ouse ?

 

 

What part of the ouse ?

[Guest alastair]

they hole up in banks for winter,wait till summer.

[Guest bigredbusa]

huntingdon way

[boris b 1]

They are in the ouse wyboston way mate ive had a few there while fishing . maybe not got that far down stream ?

[dickybird 0]

check out www.crayfishking.com/forum you should get all the info you need.

[Squirrel_Basher 17,100]

Why is it the feckers always die if kept in a keep net ?

[Guest little_lloyd]

My unlce told me the other night about how they keep them alive in freshwater tanks for two weeks before eating them to clear the body of the shit they collect down under,...Ive always caught them and had them on the fire besides the river.

 

But he reckons they need be kept in the fresh for two weeks

[nrat 8]

Pack from Environment Agency came today telling me how to apply for a licence to catch crayfish.

I dont think that I will bother. Feck that I will buy em from Sainsburys cos it would take a month to figure out all the forms and shit.

Never mind.

 

is there season regards 2 flavour

 

DEPENDS HOW YOU COOK IT ,PUT ENOUTH SAUCE OR SPICES ON FOOD AN YOU CAN EAT ANYTHING,

[D.W.D 0]

Anyone know much about these? Heard they are a pest, good eating and easy to trap - but where would i find them?

I live in Idaho and in the Columbia River drainage basin, to which the Signal Crayfish is native. If you ask local people, fishermen, or just people you see in a sporting goods store, you will get alll the information you need.

 

If you want good recipes to cook them, just do a web search Containing the words Crawfish or Crayfish and Cajun; recipes or cooking. That will give you some of the best recipes in the world to cook them. If you do not regularly eat spicy food reduce the amount of Cayenne pepper. I recommend starting about a 1/3 of the amount called for in the recipe.

However, not everybody likes hot and spicy food so alternatively there is the Swedish style as well, Swedes use dill. Substitute the word Swede or Swedish for Cajun in the search directions above.

The meat is similar to crab or lobster, and the season runs from May 1 to August 31. Purging and Boil ingredients are the only things I found that make a difference in the flavor.

 

To prepare the Crayfish, for cooking, it is important to get them to purge. If you cook them without purging then the meat will be sour tasting. To get them to purge you will need 2 containers of adequate size for your catch. 1 filled with very salty water about 1/2lbs. (1/4 kilo) of salt to every 5 gallons (3.8 liters) use a paddle to gently stir the Crayfish into the salt water. leave them there for no more than 10 minutes. I recommend 8 or 9 min. because they do not like salt water and die if left in too long. Then put them into the fresh water for 30 minutes. Rise them off and repeat with fresh salt water and fresh fresh water. this not only gets them to purge but it kill any aquatic parasites attached to them.

 

Also here is a good link on how to make a trap:

http://www.wut2c.com/Activities/Survival%2...wdad%20trap.htm

 

In the USA Crayfish means, only the small fresh water version and the large salt water version are Lobsters.

You may need to come up with your closest metric equivalent for the measurements if you live outside the U.S. and are on the metric system.

I like to build my own traps and if you take Wut2c's directions and do the following you will have a trap as good and maybe better, than any commercially available.

 

1. buy a 10 foot X 2 foot roll of 1/2 inch; 19 gauge hardware cloth (61cm x 3.1M roll of 1.27cm; 19 caliber), this cost about $14.00 (US), and a roll of 20 or 19 gauge (19 or 20 caliber) wire for tying the trap, about $3 (US). You can use electrician"s plastic tie wraps like in the Wut2c directions but they become brittle and break with time and usage.this should make 2 traps. the secret to tying with wire is to hold the 2 ends jut above where they cross and pull as you twist the pliers.

2. for wut2c's measurements substitute; 38 1/2 inches for round body then bend the first 3 rows at the ends over, one outward and the other inward. So they will interlock when you form a tube shape from the hardware cloth. looking at it you should have a thick area running the length of the tube. Tie every other square along the length of the tube at a diagonal. Always cut off any wires that are sticking out and could poke you, so you have only complete squares in your cut material. A good pair of tin snips makes cutting much faster than a wire cutter on a pair of pliers.

3. Measure your tube across the diameter and make the "semi-circle" ( it is a half circle) about 1 in. (3cm) longer than the diameter of the tube

4. Use a permanent felt tip marker Like a "Sharpie brand" to mark that distance on the end of the hardware cloth starting from one side toward the center. Take a string or your tape measure, and putting the marker on the edge of the hardware cloth and either wrapping the string around the marker or holding the end of your tape measure against the marker, and holding the other end of it on the mark you made near the center of the end of the hardware cloth, carefully draw a 1/2 circle. this will not work if your tube diameter is larger than 1/2 the width of the hardware cloth.

5. Snip the circle in the center (where your mark is) not more than 1 square deep. This makes it easier to fold the circle into a cone shape. Overlap your sides of the cone by 1 square. then starting at the tip of the cone tie every other square.

6. Add a piece of wood to the tube, before putting the cones on the trap, about 1 1/2 inches ( 5 cm) shorter than the length of the tube, (this is what you will tie your rope to). and it is easier to tie the cones into the trap if you fold over the excess than it is to trim it off. you will need to snip the excess on the big end of the cone in about 6 to 8 evenly spaced places, so it will fold over easily.

7. Add a weight of about 3 lbs or 1 1/4 kilogram to the trap.

8. To to a stream or lake and catch 2 medium size perch or any fish that size for bait. this will keep the Crayfish busy eating all night long. The fresher your bait is the larger your catch will be.

9. place your trap in the water 1/2 hour after sundown and retrieve it as close to sunup as possible. This will keep escapees at a minimum.

10. check for local regulations and limits with the appropriate agency before putting the trap in the water. And remember to throw the little ones back so there are some to trap next year. Why would anyone refuse to get a license when most are low cost or not required for Crayfish. Mine cost me $5 (US) for the year.

Good luck and good hunting.

[adam s 32]

My mates kids collected a bucket full to the brim of them a couple of weeks ago. I must be honest when i say they didnt taste of anything much.....these were boiled...does BBQ ing them make them taste better???

We have crayfish here in Australia and i boil them then peel the shells then fry them in garlic.