Hand caught Crayfish
The river Lambourn in Boxford, Newbury passes through the plot of land I live on.
The rivers in the UK are teaming with American Signal Crayfish, which were first introduced to breeding farms in the 1960's for exporting due to the high demand in the Scandinavian market. However, some escaped and have since been multiplying, decimating their British relative.
Traditionally, the way to catch the Signal Crayfish is to lay bait traps, but I opted for an alternative method. With my wetsuit on, and a gardening glove as protection from their pinsers, I dove below the water surface with a snorkel and mask to find the crayfish. They often hide under rocks and in holes and are incredibly fast swimmers in open water. I would generally catch up to 50-60 of them at a time and hold them in a keeping net until they would be taken to the local pub in exchange for beer.
As it's nearly winter now, my toes are going numb faster than usual, I decided to call it quits on the crayfishing until next year and illustrate my enjoyment for catching them instead.
