richiekelly
Well-known member
one of my sons is fishing the blythe near meriden in the west midlands this morning he has rang me to say he has had a large signal crayfish, i have never heard of them in the blythe before has anyone else ?
Signal on the blythe
- Thread starter richiekelly
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Graham Whatmore
Senior Member
Oooooh! now that I didn't want to hear, where theres one....................if they are in there it won't be long before they are in the Avon, then the Severn even the Wye, perish the thought.
I hope he accidentally trod on it and did you remind him it is illegal to put it back in?
I hope he accidentally trod on it and did you remind him it is illegal to put it back in?
richiekelly
Well-known member
I hope he accidentally trod on it and did you remind him it is illegal to put it back in?[/QUOTE]
i reminded him that it was illegal to catch them without the correct licence and that it was also illegal to return them to the water, being an upright and law abiding person he did not return it but i agree with you that it is a bad sign and to be honest i was shocked when he told me.
i reminded him that it was illegal to catch them without the correct licence and that it was also illegal to return them to the water, being an upright and law abiding person he did not return it but i agree with you that it is a bad sign and to be honest i was shocked when he told me.
Dicky (Angling Trust PAC)
Senior Member
Did your son get a photo?
I really hope this isn't true or our Midlands rivers are knackered.
Make sure you report this to the EA asap, there is a slim chance they may be able contain the situation (OK may be living in dreamland , but this is very serious!)
I really hope this isn't true or our Midlands rivers are knackered.
Make sure you report this to the EA asap, there is a slim chance they may be able contain the situation (OK may be living in dreamland , but this is very serious!)
peter crabtree
AKA Simon, 1953 - 2022 (RIP)
Dont panic! All the doom mongers 10 years ago said that when our mature fish die ,and the fry or spawn have all been eaten by ronnie and reggie, thats it end of.
Why is it that darn sarf we have bigger barbel,chub ,perch especially,and theres no sign of any decline in the fry .They will damage our indigenous crays ,by a disease/virus they carry,we have covered all that before ,and maybe undermine a few banks,but the proof is the size of speci fish has definitely increased since their arrival in virtually every waterway down here......
---------- Post added at 14:30 ---------- Previous post was at 14:02 ----------
DERR D, DERR D. jaws impersonation,sorry, while I/we are on the subject , have you got mitten crabs,zebra mussels,and parakeets where you live?
you might soon
Why is it that darn sarf we have bigger barbel,chub ,perch especially,and theres no sign of any decline in the fry .They will damage our indigenous crays ,by a disease/virus they carry,we have covered all that before ,and maybe undermine a few banks,but the proof is the size of speci fish has definitely increased since their arrival in virtually every waterway down here......
---------- Post added at 14:30 ---------- Previous post was at 14:02 ----------
DERR D, DERR D. jaws impersonation,sorry, while I/we are on the subject , have you got mitten crabs,zebra mussels,and parakeets where you live?
you might soon
preston96
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Dont panic! All the doom mongers 10 years ago said that when our mature fish die ,and the fry or spawn have all been eaten by ronnie and reggie, thats it end of.
Why is it that darn sarf we have bigger barbel,chub ,perch especially,and theres no sign of any decline in the fry .They will damage our indigenous crays ,by a disease/virus they carry,we have covered all that before ,and maybe undermine a few banks,but the proof is the size of speci fish has definitely increased since their arrival in virtually every waterway down here......
---------- Post added at 14:30 ---------- Previous post was at 14:02 ----------
DERR D, DERR D. jaws impersonation,sorry, while I/we are on the subject , have you got mitten crabs,zebra mussels,and parakeets where you live?
you might soon
I have to admit i was thinking along those lines myself....though in a perfect world i would prefer the signals not to be here and own own to thrive perhaps it's not all doom and gloom.
I know of the parakeets you have near to London, i have seen the colony........cant say i fancy those everywhere!!
richiekelly
Well-known member
this wasnt reported to the EA as i dont see what they can do about it,he ended up with 4 signals during the day the biggest around 8 inches long, i will e mail them though just to see what their response is if i get one i will post it on here.
---------- Post added at 23:07 ---------- Previous post was at 22:27 ----------
[/COLOR]DERR D, DERR D. jaws impersonation,sorry, while I/we are on the subject , have you got mitten crabs,zebra mussels,and parakeets where you live?
you might soon[/QUOTE]
no mitten crabs or zebra mussels yet parakeets we have but only in twycross zoo
---------- Post added at 23:07 ---------- Previous post was at 22:27 ----------
[/COLOR]DERR D, DERR D. jaws impersonation,sorry, while I/we are on the subject , have you got mitten crabs,zebra mussels,and parakeets where you live?
you might soon
[/QUOTE]no mitten crabs or zebra mussels yet parakeets we have but only in twycross zoo
peter crabtree
AKA Simon, 1953 - 2022 (RIP)
Crays have been in southern waterways for over 20 years now, The Grand union canal created a perfect invasion route for them.
Zebra mussels and mitten crabs are a more recent. These I believe started in the docks on the Thames in London, zebra mussels are now present in most of the canals,ressies and pits in the SE. Last weekend I fished the GU in Tring north Herts,pulled out a branch I snagged and it was covered in zebra mussels. At a local match lake peg 15 is the dreaded peg,20m out is a gravel bar,to find the fish you have to cast over it,the top of the bar is infested with them and your line ends up in ribbons after a few bream try to dive down behind it...
Zebra mussels and mitten crabs are a more recent. These I believe started in the docks on the Thames in London, zebra mussels are now present in most of the canals,ressies and pits in the SE. Last weekend I fished the GU in Tring north Herts,pulled out a branch I snagged and it was covered in zebra mussels. At a local match lake peg 15 is the dreaded peg,20m out is a gravel bar,to find the fish you have to cast over it,the top of the bar is infested with them and your line ends up in ribbons after a few bream try to dive down behind it...
newbieneil
Well-known member
i fish the blythe at coleshill regularly(maxstoke lane/cuttle cottage section) and theres loads in there...i found an actual lobster pot the one time someone had left on a rope tied to a stake in the bank and when i pulled it out -out of curiosity-i`d say there where at least 30 in there. its impossible to ledger as you just get cray fish bites all day...ive gotto be honest though...i couldnt tell a signal from our ones and i certainly aint gonna handle them...if i hook em ...they get dangled and thrashed about until they drop off the hook
preston96
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which "Arrow"? digger......
S-Kippy
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I hate the damn things.Whatever they are or aren't doing ecologically I gave up fishing the Kennet because I was so fed up with the bait robbing vandals. Drove me nuts. God knows what they eat when they can't get bait.
I pray for an outbreak of crayfish flu.Nasty bloody things
I pray for an outbreak of crayfish flu.Nasty bloody things
richiekelly
Well-known member
i have never had a problem with them at the maxstoke lane stretch but i have only fished it in the winter when they are less active,
the difference between signals and our indiginous crays is that signals are red underneath their claws, they also grow much larger.
Graham Whatmore
Senior Member
Newbieneil...... You should make a point of googling signal crayfish pictures so you know exactly what they look like, if its got red claws stamp on it (accidentally of course) which also solves your problem of getting them off the hook, it is illegal to put them back in the river.
Dicky (Angling Trust PAC)
Senior Member
preston96
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It sounds very nice!! and what better than a trap to "divert" them whilst you are fishing..........and now that you are a married man ****ie, did you know that they are afrodic.....apfrod......apphr....
GO down well just before bedtime? :w
S-Kippy
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Stamp on it ? I've had things like lobsters that would have your foot off. I didn't know it was illegal to return them though....that's cheered me up a bit.
Are there any serious attempts going on to do anything about them or does the EA regard it as a lost cause ? I seem to recall some country [Sweden ?] set about trapping them,neutering the males and then putting them back.I think it was fairly successful in controlling numbers.
Its illegal to trap crays without a license. Apart from anything else it will be a surefire way to spread the virus from one water to another. The Ea in Devon will not license at all for this very reason, but you may get one in other areas. The spread of signal crayfish in the southwest particularly since the late seventies is amazing they are very prolific and infest rivers much further south then our indigenous crays ever did.
richiekelly
Well-known member
according to the EA website since the introduction of signal crayfish in 1976 100 crayfish farms have been registered with DEFRA, they say approximately 40 wild populations have become established by escapees from these farms, they go on to say that fishing for crayfish is not regulated other than in the thames region, they dont say which species of crayfish but our indiginous species is protected so i presume they must mean signals so whats to stop anyone (me ) from fishing for them with a rod and line and removing them for the pot? is a licence only needed to trap them?
i have e mailed the EA informing them of signal crayfish in the blythe as yet i have had no reply.
i have e mailed the EA informing them of signal crayfish in the blythe as yet i have had no reply.
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newbieneil
Well-known member
i think they are definately signals ive caught in the blythe...you find a lot of claws and stuff on the bank where people have broken them up to use as bait and the remains are usually red-tinged ...heres one i caught! ....Welcome to Facebook | Facebook