Crayfish from the lakes


Video

	In hundreds of Finnish lakes there are either noble or signal crayfish. Noble crayfish is native species and it exists in smaller lakes, rivers and brooks. In many big lakes of Southern Finland there are good stocks of signal crayfish. Signal crayfish catches are being hauled up at a rapid pace. Travellers may also try their luck at crayfishing in the waters of Tampere.

Through the ages, the Tampere Region has been one of the most important crayfishing areas in Finland. Crayfish stocks in water routes destroyed by crayfish plague have been revived by adding signal crayfish, which is resistant to the plague fungus. Indeed, stocks of signal crayfish in the large lakes of the region are now developing rapidly, and people have been able to restart crayfishing after an interval of almost 100 years. Crayfish are already being fished on Lakes Näsijärvi, Pyhäjärvi, Roine, Mallasvesi and Pälkänevesi. In the near future, signal crayfishing will also start on Lakes Längelmävesi, Tarjannevesi, Ruovesi and Vanajavesi. Catches will increase at a dizzying pace and these pincered creatures will be hauled up by the million in just a few years. Signal crayfish are caught with crayfish pots from rocky shores and shoals from August to October. This creature thrives in slightly deeper waters than the domestic river crayfish. The best catching depth is generally 2–5 metres.

The licence regulations for crayfishing are similar to those for fishing. This means that a crayfisher always needs permission from the owner of the water area. People not resident in a fishing area have the opportunity to go crayfishing in the water areas owned by the City of Tampere, Lakes Näsijärvi and Pyhäjärvi, for example. Planting crayfish requires permission from both the owner of the water area and a fishing authority. Small headwaters will still be dedicated to domestic river crayfish, whose value will continue to increase in the future. Under no circumstances should signal caryfish be transferred from a crayfishing area to other waters, since they carry the plague fungus, which can be disastrous for the noble crayfish.