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The Crayfish of Nebraska

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26 now papers and reports can be "self- published" by posting them on a website. If you are a student, your instructor can help you out with this. But, to be accepted, the work should be carefully thought out, carefully done and, most importantly, accurate and correct. It is disappointing to find, in what appears to be a well-done study, that the crayfish was misidentified. And, please, you should work with crayfish that you have collected locally. Biological supply houses provide common species that are already well known and are often invasive. You learn so much more if you go out and get your hands and feet wet while collecting your own critters. ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE Earl Theron Engle, in his 1926 publication on Nebraska crayfishes, stated "Personal inquiry at the office of the game and fish department of Nebraska, at Lincoln, brought the information that crayfishes were worth nothing and could not be considered among the resources of the state." That is an interesting statement but, given the times, was probably not unexpected. At that time, the Game and Fish Commission consisted of several fish hatcheries and a handful of wardens. There were no biologists and there was no interest in the documenting the state's wildlife resources. Fish and wildlife were valued as to their usefulness to people, usually as food, and studying them was left to people like University students and professors. On the positive side, in southern states like Louisiana, crayfish growing and harvesting for the food trade is a big business. 118 One Internet site stated that Louisiana crayfish farms produce almost 10 million pounds a year worth some $5 million. The production of crayfish for fish bait and use in laboratories is also fairly important. In Nebraska, aside from a few individuals catching crayfish for their own use, harvest for food appears to be of minor importance. There may be some harvest for resale as fish bait. There are also ecological benefits which are discussed in the later section on Ecology. On the negative side, crayfish burrowing can be a problem in areas where they develop large populations. As they dig their burrows, these crayfishes create large earthen chimneys. In high numbers, these chimneys can be a problem for farm machinery and lawn mowers. In Nebraska, burrowing crayfishes are relatively uncommon so, here, they are not a problem. Extensive crayfish burrowing has been known to weaken earthen dams and cause canals to leak. Again, this has not been a problem in Nebraska because our populations of burrowers are low. However, if some of the southern burrowing crayfishes that are common in the food and bait trade were to get established here, that situation could change. Nonnative organisms, when introduced into new areas, often have population explosions which could lead to problems, such as in the irrigation canals in the western part of the state and farm ponds in the east. High numbers of crayfish in fish culture ponds can also be a problem as they will eat young fish and fish eggs as well as competing with the fish for the same food.

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