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Hi! That's a great question, and a lot depends on what it is that you're concerned is being affected. Rusty is a high-metabolism crayfish that hunts during the day (many if not most other crayfish species are nocturnal) and has a fairly "aggressive" nature. In a new territory, there is concern over the rusty's ability to defend against predators (the thinking is that the predators will incrase their eating of the natives instead of tussle with the rusty), the rusty's ability to eat during the day while nocturnal species are in hiding, hence possibly reducing the resources available for the native nocturnal species. Also, the rusty females can hang onto fertilized eggs until conditions are optimal, so she can be transported quite a distance on her own, settle into a new area and start a whole new population from scratch. Now, I don't know yet if other species do this, as well, so it might not be an exclusive trait to rusty.
Interestingly, rusty can also mate with native species, creating hybirds. My question is whether this will eventually be a "good" thing, making a new species that is hardier than the natives were. Since crayfish are scavengers, it's entirely possible that rusty and the hybrids (sounds like a rock band!) will do more to clean up polluted lakes and rivers as they eat algae, aquatic plants (some of which are highly invasive), dead creatures and other detritus. I'm not saying rusty isn't causing problems or hasn't got the potential to cause problems; I'm saying we ought to pay close attention and not allow ourselves too much of a knee-jerk reaction.
Kelly, Director of Black River Action Team
blackrivercleanup@Yahoo.com
Wiki User
∙ 14y ago
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When was Rusty crayfish created?
Rusty crayfish was created in 1852.
Where did the rusty crayfish come from?
The rusty crayfish came from the Ohio river basin.
What does the rusty crayfish compete with?
other native crayfish :)
What is the rusty crayfish's predator?
Humans
What harm do crayfish cause?
Native species of crayfish that are are a normal part of the ecosystem are not harmful. But there are several invasive species, like the rusty crayfish, that can kill off native crayfish and other crustacians. The rusty crayfish has a thicker shell and less "meat" and therefore are are not a good part of the food chain depriving the ecosystem of the nutrients from the crustacians it replaces. Invasive species also tend to destroy large amounts of water plants that further degrade the food chain. Also there is an infection that occasionally occurs in crayfish that can spread to other animals but this is usually a normal part of the life cycle and not neccasarily harmful.
What is the origin of the phrase 'pulling a rusty'?
in cockney rhyming slang "rusty nail" means jail; so pulling a rusty may mean incurring a jail sentence.
Do crayfish exist in Nebraska?
There are five native species of crayfishes in Nebraska. These include the Northern crayfish (Orconectes virilis), Papershell crayfish (Orconectes immunis), Ringed crayfish (Orconectes neglectus neglectus), Devil crayfish (Cambarus diogenes), and Grassland crayfish (Procambarus gracilis). The Northern crayfish is found statewide. The Papershell crayfish is primarily in the eastern and northern portions of the state, being rare in the Republican and Blue River basins. The Ringed crayfish is found in the western 2/3 of the state. Devil crayfish are found in the east and north. The range of the Grassland crayfish is not well defined but is in the southeast corner of the state. In addition, Rusty crayfish (Orconectes rusticus) were recently found in a couple of lakes in the metro-Omaha area.
What are examples of benthos?
Benthic animals live in the sediments at the bottom of lakes. A good example is the rusty crayfish, found in North America.
What is the freshwater lobster?
Crayfish
Use shrouded in a sentence?
A state with a new rusty iron curtain would become a burial shroud for Russia.
What do they call crayfish in Australia?
Crayfish are known as both crayfish and yabbies in Australia. "Yabbies" are freshwater crayfish, often found in rivers, creeks and dams in rural areas.
Is your crayfish dieing?
My older crayfish died and my littler crayfish has not yet how do/can they die?
