{"id":1499,"date":"2010-11-09T21:27:11","date_gmt":"2010-11-09T20:27:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/?p=1499"},"modified":"2010-11-09T21:27:11","modified_gmt":"2010-11-09T20:27:11","slug":"white-clawed-crayfish-now-endangered","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/2010\/11\/white-clawed-crayfish-now-endangered\/","title":{"rendered":"White-clawed Crayfish now ‘endangered’"},"content":{"rendered":"

The white-clawed Crayfish\u00a0has now been upgraded to \u2018Endangered\u2019 on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)\u00a0Red List of Threatened Species.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The White-clawed crayfish can grow up to 12cm in length. Pic Bristol Zoo Gardens<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Experts warn the species could become extinct from the UK within the next 30 years; it is currently a protected species.<\/p>\n

The upgraded status from \u2018Vulnerable\u2019 to \u2018Endangered\u2019 on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species follows a Sampled Red List Index (SRLI) assessment by the Zoological Society of London<\/a> (ZSL). \u00a0The ranking gives an indication of how likely a species is to becoming extinct.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0White-clawed Crayfish<\/a> (Austropotamobius pallipes) is the only species of crayfish native to the UK.<\/p>\n

It can grow up to 12cm in length and live for 7 to 12 years in the wild.<\/p>\n

They can often be found in small streams, rivers, lakes, reservoirs and old quarries. They prefer slightly alkaline well oxygenated water with only a small amount of sediment.<\/p>\n

[pullquote]The change in status of white-clawed crayfish will help stress the need for conservation strategies
\nEve Leegwater, Environment Agency <\/strong>[\/pullquote]<\/p>\n

Eve Leegwater, Technical Biodiversity Officer at the Environment Agency<\/a>, said: \u201c\u2018It is important to base conservation efforts on scientific research and the IUCN Red List has become an increasingly important tool to guide government and scientific institutes towards the conservation and legislation of species and habitats at risk of extinction.\u201d<\/p>\n

She added: \u201cThe change in status of White-clawed Crayfish will help stress the need for conservation strategies to be implemented to aid this valuable species.\u201d<\/p>\n

Strongholds for the white-clawed crayfish<\/h2>\n

Throughout the country a number of organisations are mobilising in an effort to protect the few remaining animals.<\/p>\n

The South West Crayfish Project<\/a> is currently running the largest strategic translocation in the UK to date, re-homing at-risk populations of White-clawed Crayfish to new safe sites.<\/p>\n

In addition, a breeding programme for the crayfish is being developed at Bristol Zoo Gardens<\/a> \u2013 the sister organisation to the Bristol Conservation and Science Foundation (BCSF).<\/p>\n

Double threat<\/h3>\n

Up to 70% of White-clawed Crayfish have between lost from the south west of England and some parts of the UK have lost their entire populations.<\/p>\n

[pullquote]There is currently no effective way to eradicate non-native crayfish species, or the crayfish plague.
\nMaddy Rees, BCSF<\/strong>[\/pullquote]<\/p>\n

This is predominantly due to the crayfish plague, called aphanomyces<\/a>. This is\u00a0a fungus-like disease which is harmless to people and most animals, but lethal to White-clawed Crayfish.<\/p>\n

A second threat comes from the introduction of non-native species of crayfish, especially the American signal crayfish<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Precautions to help stop contamination<\/strong><\/p>\n

Maddy Rees, UK Conservation Officer for the Bristol Conservation and Science Foundation, said: \u201cAlthough research is being undertaken, there is currently no effective way to eradicate non-native crayfish species, or the crayfish plague. However, there are some simple, precautionary steps the public can take to help prevent the spread of the crayfish plague.<\/p>\n

\"White-clawed<\/a>
White-clawed crayfish Pic Bristol Zoo Gardens<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The plague can be carried on anything that gets wet in infected water, so we are urging people to wash, dry and, if possible, disinfect footwear, fishing tackle, nets and other equipment that gets damp in our rivers and lakes.<\/p>\n

Never trap for any species of crayfish without a trapping licence, as it is illegal, and finally, never move wild fish between waterways, always use a reputable stockist.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the North of England scientists hope that the native crayfish can find safe-haven in the relative safety of the waterways of Cumbria.<\/p>\n

Paul Bradley who has been studying the native White-clawed Crayfish and\u00a0the plague for over 10 years \u00a0said \u00a0\u201cCumbria supports possibly\u00a0the best White-clawed Crayfish population in Europe.\u00a0They are therefore\u00a0very vulnerable to the plague and a single incident of the plague could\u00a0devastate the Cumbrian population\u201d.<\/p>\n

White-clawed Crayfish conference<\/h2>\n

The survival of white-clawed crayfish will be the focus of a conference held at Bristol Zoo Gardens during November 2010.<\/p>\n

The event, called \u2018Species survival: Securing White-clawed Crayfish in a changing environment\u2019 will take place on November 16 and 17 2010.<\/p>\n

It will include a range of lectures from speakers from across Europe, and presentations from experts in the field of UK crayfish conservation.<\/p>\n

To find out more, or to register to attend, please visit the \u2018what\u2019s on\u2019 pages at www.bristolzoo.org.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Further Crayfish information<\/h3>\n

For more information about the South West Crayfish Project, please visit www.bcsf.org.uk\/about\/conservation\/project<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Guidance on works affecting the White-clawed Crayfish – Natural England<\/a><\/p>\n

The life cycle of the freshwater invertebrate – \u00a0Eden Rivers Trust<\/a><\/p>\n

Creating an ARK site for native Crayfish protection<\/a><\/p>\n

Warning<\/strong><\/p>\n

The public are being\u00a0reminded that it is illegal to disturb the protected White-clawed Crayfish\u00a0without a licence<\/a> and heavy fines may be imposed.<\/p>\n

For more information on\u00a0how to identify the differences between the native white-clawed crayfish\u00a0and the invasive American signal crayfish, visit \u00a0the South Cumbria rivers Trust website –\u00a0www.scrt.co.uk\/cfinns<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The white-clawed crayfish has now been upgraded to \u2018Endangered\u2019 on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[886,2519,1249,2518,2539,2530,2511,2528,2532,2506,2525,2510,2521,1003,1348,480,2508,2534,481,474,2529,2514,2543,2536,2544,2487,4571,2545,2509,2515,2517,2522,2546,2540,1585,2533,2547,2541,2548,2520,2542,2512,2523,2524],"class_list":["post-1499","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-featured","tag-10-years","tag-american-food","tag-animals","tag-boots","tag-bristol-zoo-gardens","tag-conservation-efforts","tag-conservation-of-nature","tag-conservation-strategies","tag-cray","tag-crayfish-population","tag-double-threat","tag-drying-equipment","tag-england","tag-environment-agency","tag-eve","tag-extinction","tag-fishing-nets","tag-fungus","tag-habitats","tag-initiative","tag-iucn-red-list","tag-kayaks","tag-lakes-reservoirs","tag-legislation","tag-length-pic","tag-native-species","tag-organisations","tag-oxygenated-water","tag-paul-bradley","tag-plague","tag-population-europe","tag-protected-species","tag-quarries","tag-risk-populations","tag-rivers","tag-science-foundation","tag-sediment","tag-sister-organisation","tag-streams","tag-strongholds","tag-translocation","tag-water-bodies","tag-zoological-society-of-london","tag-zsl","entry"],"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/author\/admin-2\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1499","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/46"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1499"}],"version-history":[{"count":24,"href":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1499\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1525,"href":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1499\/revisions\/1525"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1499"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1499"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.naturearoundme.com\/contents1a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1499"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}