Crayfish crackdown ordered on River Witham

The Environment Agency (EA) is to launch a campaign to save a rare, local, water dweller – the white-clawed crayfish.

In June, as part of the Lincolnshire Biodiversity Action Plan, 10,000 crayfish information leaflets will be sent to homes along the River Witham from South Witham, through Grantham to Long Bennington to inform local residents about this small, rare, lobster-like creature.

The white-clawed crayfish, once widespread across Europe, may become extinct in the UK. The River Witham is the only remaining white-clawed crayfish site in Lincolnshire and its survival is under threat from an aggressive competitor – the American signal crayfish. It was introduced and farmed as a culinary delicacy and then escaped (or in some cases was deliberately released) into the wild. This larger species of crayfish out competes its more fragile transatlantic cousins for food and shelter and carries crayfish plague, a disease that our white-clawed species is highly susceptible to. White-clawed crayfish need clean water and are sensitive to pollution, low water levels and damage to their habitat.

In the first week of June two evening workshops will be held for local farmers and landowners to help improve habitat, maintain environmental stewardship of land along the river and provide guidance to prevent water pollution.

Phil Smith, Technical Officer at the EA, explained "It is now illegal to release crayfish into our rivers but, despite this, non-native species of crayfish have still become established in the wild. We still need to look out for American signals and ensure that they don’t get into the Witham, this would be the end of the line for the white-clawed crayfish in Lincolnshire. Signal crayfish can usually be identified by the red underside of their pincer claws, which they wave aggressively if they are disturbed." The EA wants anyone who thinks they have seen signal crayfish to note where they were found and inform the Agency, but not to attempt to handle or capture them as it can be difficult to tell the two species apart and the native white-clawed crayfish is very sensitive and easily harmed. Sightings should be reported on the EA hotline number: 0800 80 70 60.