First, I don't recall EVER seeing a crawfish here in Maine. I don't doubt we have them, just never spotted one.

Second, this one was on my sidewalk in front of the house, a minimum of a couple hundred yards from any significant water source.

Do they venture that far from water normally?

Further than I’ve ever spotted one. Maybe a bird dropped it.

Most of the ones I've seen are just coming out of the water..

They have been introduced to your state and are invasive

https://lakestewardsofmaine.or...Maine-Ecosystems.pdf

Baby Lobster?

I don't see why they wouldn't be in Maine, especially if you're close to fresh water.

See if he's got friends, and like HRK posted... Nice cold beer, some corn on the cob... One hell-of-a-way to spend an afternoon!

quote:

Originally posted by HayesGreener:
They have been introduced to your state and are invasive

https://lakestewardsofmaine.or...Maine-Ecosystems.pdf

I read that article as well and thought the same thing. Further reading from other articles indicates those particular species have been introduced, but Maine has native species of crayfish as well.

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:

quote:

Originally posted by HayesGreener:
They have been introduced to your state and are invasive

https://lakestewardsofmaine.or...Maine-Ecosystems.pdf

I read that article as well and thought the same thing. Further reading from other articles indicates those particular species have been introduced, but Maine has native species of crayfish as well.

The original article also notes, buried in text towards the end, that one of the problems with the two non-native species was their impact on the native species.

quote:

O. rusticus is an aggressive species, and is known to displace native crayfish in two ways: through crayfish-to-crayfish competition and by causing increased fish predation on native species. (Rusty crayfish, for example, force native species from the best daytime hiding places.)

So, some crayfish in ME are native, others invasive.

I agree with the guess above that something probably moved it - 200 yards is pretty far from water for a crayfish.

She never brought a crawfish but our cat has left a wide assortment of dead things on our doorstep...

I have found them in my backyard before…about 50 yards from a creek…but 200 seems like a stretch. Any recent flooding? My guess is that a bird most likely dropped it.

I used to find them all the time growing up in mid MI, 1/4 mile from a water source, they would build these mud towers

Here in PA they are called Crayfish and you can find them in many streams and creeks and lakes. I used to love hunting them when I was a kid in local creeks. They never got really big like your typical edible Crawfish, maybe 3-4 inches.

They can exist where the water table is close to the surface. They just dig a tunnel straight down to it. They build what we use to call “chimneys” with the mud they removed in digging. Those “chimneys” can be 6-8” tall as I remember.
If you start seeing chimneys in your yard, you’ve got crawdads in your hood.

quote:

Originally posted by BigSwede:
I used to find them all the time growing up in mid MI, 1/4 mile from a water source, they would build these mud towers

I have an easement/ drainage ditch between my house and my neighbor,

we have several of those towers that are built between grass cuttings,

I had one in the middle of my yard this spring when we had a very wet period and that area stayed soaked,
found the 'dad a few weeks later on the grass, dried up,
guess he built in an area that dried up too fast for him to live


FWIW, that easement drains into a small spring fed 'wetland' that is basically a creek or stream maybe a foot wide in spots, and dry in the summer,
long ways from were it feeds (as in maybe a mile) into a bigger creek

Thanks all. I do have a drainage ditch beside the house and we have had a LOT of rain this year, so that's probably it.

That ditch is normally dry or has just a trickle of water running through it except during a rain and a day or two after. Didn't really think it was suitable habitat for them.

I remember the "chimneys" from when I was a kid in Michigan. None here that I've spotted yet.

They love rainwater drainage ditches.

They are just fresh water midget lobsters...

number of years ago I was walking my dog the day after a heavy rain.... up the street behind some stores is a big mud puddle probably 30ft round and 4" deep in the middle... dog rushes over and jumps in the middle after something... comes out with a nice size bream.... 1/4 mile from any pond. Best guess... hawk dropped it...

quote:

Originally posted by BigSwede:
I used to find them all the time growing up in mid MI, 1/4 mile from a water source, they would build these mud towers

I have them in my yard and I see Crawfish all the time. But I do live in Louisiana.

Paul, I used to catch crayfish a a kid in the Mexico/Rumford area (late 80s).

Only seen then in the water, but I do know they can travel a bit.

I could go with 2-3 lbs. boiled in Crab Boil with potatoes and corn on the cob. Of course, a pitcher of good beer is also required!!

Safety tip: They will pinch the shit out of your toesies if you wade barefoot in the crick.