Conservationists meet to help save UK crayfish from extinction
Scientists and conservationists from across Europe gathered at Bristol Zoo Gardens to discuss how to save the UK native white-clawed crayfish from extinction.
White-clawed crayfish (Austropotamobius pallipes) are the UK’s only native freshwater crayfish, but their numbers have suffered extensive decline in recent years, mainly due to competition from, and plague carried by, North American signal crayfish. Experts warn the species could become extinct in Great Britain within the next 30 years.
Last month the species was officially upgraded from ‘vulnerable’ to ‘endangered’ on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species following a Sampled Red List Index (SRLI) assessment by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL). The ranking gives an indication of how likely a species is to become globally extinct.
Neil Maddison, Head of Conservation Programmes for Bristol Zoo, added: “The white- clawed crayfish is one of our most globally important freshwater species, yet it is clear that unless we continue to investigate solutions to the problems of non-native species such as the signal crayfish, and the plague that they carry, we are in very real danger of losing the species.
“This would send a catastrophic message to the rest of the world that the UK is unable to protect its own biodiversity. As a signatory to the Convention on Biological Diversity, and as one of the world’s G20 countries, we have a stated commitment, and must be prepared to back this up with appropriate resources for protecting our wildlife.”
Up to 70 per cent of white-clawed crayfish have between lost from the south west and some parts of the UK have lost their entire populations. This is predominantly due to the crayfish plague - a fungus-like disease which is harmless to people and most animals, but lethal to white-clawed crayfish.
The crayfish plague is spread in waterways by the invasive North American signal crayfish – a non-native species which is taking over UK waterways and wiping out our smaller native species.
The South West Crayfish Project is currently running the largest strategic translocation in the UK to date, re-homing at-risk populations of white-clawed crayfish to new, safer sites. In addition, a breeding programme for the crayfish is being developed at Bristol Zoo Gardens.
For more information about the South West Crayfish Project, please visit
www.bcsf.org. uk/about/conservation/project
How can you help? As well as being spread by the North American signal crayfish, the crayfish plague is also spread by people on things such as damp footwear and fishing equipment. While we encourage people to get out and about and enjoy our beautiful countryside, there are a few simple measures people can take to help prevent the spread of this disease: • Anglers should disinfect their equipment. • Anglers should not trap any crayfish species without a trapping licence from the Environment Agency.
• Anyone using our waterways should thoroughly dry any equipment or footwear they get wet in our rivers and lakes. The drying is particularly important as any remaining moisture may enable the disease to survive.
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