Crayfish in pond?

[herzausstahl]

So I was talking to a local aquarium store owner recently (30+ years in the business, stocking local species also) and he suggested I try putting crayfish (crawdads) into my stream to eat the string algae, has anyone else had these in there pond ,intentionally or unintentionally? I am curious to try it but also curious if anyone has had any issues with them.

 

[JohnHuff]

Do you also have fish in the pond? I think they would be bad for the fish.

 

[Lisak1]

We have both - they ignore each other. As for eating string algae - I would guess they do, but you'd need a lot of crayfish to notice a difference.

 

[herzausstahl]

Do you also have fish in the pond? I think they would be bad for the fish.

I do john but his opinion is that they would ignore each other as Lisak1 said. He said they might try once and awhile to catch one but it shouldn't matter.

 

[herzausstahl]

We have both - they ignore each other. As for eating string algae - I would guess they do, but you'd need a lot of crayfish to notice a difference.

Thanks for the reply, have you ever had any issues with them and your liner? I have the stream filled with small to medium river rock & didn't know if I'd have any liner issues if they tried to burrow down. Where did you get yours from?

 

[Big Lou]

Crawfish love mud, gravel and debris. Caution, many chemicals specifically liquid algaecide kills all crustains! Some fish will eat small crawfish. They may pinch your liner folds. Crawfish will pinch you. Can they puncher the liner? If a 43 mil EDPM I doubt it but ......... Love to hide in rock crevices, in and around plants. You may need to feed them. Fish are much faster than crawfish but that doesn't mean they could not get in a pinch no and again.

I personally love the idea if they can thrive in your pond without causing problems. More research might be a good idea.

 

[Lisak1]

We bought ours at a local pond supply store - same place we get our fish. If you've ever been pinched by a crayfish, you know there's no way they could pinch through a pond liner. We used to catch them in creeks near our home when we were kids and wrap them in wet newspaper to keep them alive until we could get them home to clean, boil, and eat them... yup, they are tasty! Anyway, if they can't pinch a hole in wet newspaper, they don't stand a chance against a liner.

And don't buy them because you think they will be fun to watch - we see ours maybe a couple of times a season, if we're lucky. It's always a surprise when we come across one, or see one scurrying across the pond. They are private little creatures!

 

[Shdwdrgn]

My experience with crayfish... We got two freebies from the fish store that had really small pinchers, not the one large claw like most have. We kept them in a 120-gal aquarium for the first year, but they completely destroyed any plants we put in, and they were always grabbing ahold of the fins of a passing fish. This type was suitable for outdoor freezing weather, so I put them both in my pond thinking that the koi were quite a bit larger than any fish the crayfish had seen before. After the first year, I could only find one of them. That was when I built the new, larger pond, so that guy went in with the rest of the fish, and that was the last time I ever saw him.

Maybe the koi took offense at having their fins pinched. Maybe they weren't actually suited for being outdoors. But they sure didn't last long. And I can't say that they ever had any affect on the amount of algae.

 

[herzausstahl]

We bought ours at a local pond supply store - same place we get our fish. If you've ever been pinched by a crayfish, you know there's no way they could pinch through a pond liner. We used to catch them in creeks near our home when we were kids and wrap them in wet newspaper to keep them alive until we could get them home to clean, boil, and eat them... yup, they are tasty! Anyway, if they can't pinch a hole in wet newspaper, they don't stand a chance against a liner.

And don't buy them because you think they will be fun to watch - we see ours maybe a couple of times a season, if we're lucky. It's always a surprise when we come across one, or see one scurrying across the pond. They are private little creatures!

I could catch them in my parents creek when it dries up this summer, or might go the lazy route and see if I can find them at a bait store. I used to always catch them when I was younger but never ate them. My dad on the other hand caught & ate them all the time just like you said.

 

[herzausstahl]

Crawfish love mud, gravel and debris. Caution, many chemicals specifically liquid algaecide kills all crustains! Some fish will eat small crawfish. They may pinch your liner folds. Crawfish will pinch you. Can they puncher the liner? If a 43 mil EDPM I doubt it but ......... Love to hide in rock crevices, in and around plants. You may need to feed them. Fish are much faster than crawfish but that doesn't mean they could not get in a pinch no and again.

I personally love the idea if they can thrive in your pond without causing problems. More research might be a good idea.

Thanks Lou, it was more the burrowing part I was unsure of, didn't think they could puncture the epdm but figured it didn't hurt to ask. As for feeding them, the idea is they will eat the algae that I prefer not to use chemicals on. I still have a bottle of tetra unused from last year because I didn't want to take a chance on harming the fish.

 

[herzausstahl]

My experience with crayfish... We got two freebies from the fish store that had really small pinchers, not the one large claw like most have. We kept them in a 120-gal aquarium for the first year, but they completely destroyed any plants we put in, and they were always grabbing ahold of the fins of a passing fish. This type was suitable for outdoor freezing weather, so I put them both in my pond thinking that the koi were quite a bit larger than any fish the crayfish had seen before. After the first year, I could only find one of them. That was when I built the new, larger pond, so that guy went in with the rest of the fish, and that was the last time I ever saw him.

Maybe the koi took offense at having their fins pinched. Maybe they weren't actually suited for being outdoors. But they sure didn't last long. And I can't say that they ever had any affect on the amount of algae.

Thanks for the info shdwdrgn. I'm curious how it will play out since I have rosy reds, goldfish, shrub bites, & koi. But I also have the stream that has a few inches of small river rock in it. Did you ever see them in your stream & have your dojo loaches survived?

 

[Big Lou]

I love your state. Back in the day traveled their for business. Good luck!

 

[Shdwdrgn]

Thanks for the info shdwdrgn. I'm curious how it will play out since I have rosy reds, goldfish, shrub bites, & koi. But I also have the stream that has a few inches of small river rock in it. Did you ever see them in your stream & have your dojo loaches survived?

No, I put the remaining one in the new pond and never saw him again. Not even a carcass. I have no idea what ever happened.

Also, I think I'm right on the edge of where the dojos can survive. I definitely would not even try in regions colder than zone 5. I saw fewer every year and figure some succumbed to the cold each Winter. Last year I decided whoever was left was eating all the fish eggs, so we planned to catch any we saw and bring them in to the aquarium... then I didn't see one all Summer. I managed to catch one early this Spring because I was pulling out irises and he was in the roots (and quickly adjusted to living in a warm 120-gal aquarium for four others). If you don't ever want any fry, these guys will ensure that never happens, but unfortunately don't expect to see much of them...

 

[herzausstahl]

I love your state. Back in the day traveled their for business. Good luck!

Thanks Lou! I love it too, I get to experience all the seasons with relatively few natural disasters to worry about.

 

[Big Lou]

Should have reviewed my post for errors!