Texas Parks & Wildlife warns of invasive species
AUSTIN, Texas - A "mud-bug invasion" has prompted an alert from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) regarding two invasive crawfish.
They go by different names, depending on where you are from: crayfish, crawfish, crawdaddies, and mudbugs.
TPWD is not issuing its warning about the popular version people love to cook and eat. The problem is with the types sold for aquariums.
The water pets could be dumped into waterways when their owners no longer want them. With that in mind, the main focus of the TPWD alert is about what’s called the "Marbled Crayfish." It’s a mutated species that can reproduce by itself.
They are also all female, and reproduce by cloning, which means a single crayfish can easily become the first of an entire invasive population.
FOX 7 was told none have been found in any Texas waterway, but agency experts are worried. They got a report that "Marbled Crayfish" had been seen for sale at a few pet stores in Texas.
FOX 7 spoke with invasive species expert Mónica McGarrity about this crayfish problem.
"They're known to carry crayfish, plague, which they're resistant to. So they won't be sick, but they can pass it on to our native crayfish if they are introduced," said McGarrity.
The Marbled Crayfish could affect some crawfish farms.
"There's certainly potential for them to compete with any crayfish around the state. We really don't know how bad their competitive impact would be. That really hasn't been studied very well," said McGarrity.
The Marbled Crayfish may not be in Texas yet, but the Australian Red Claw Crayfish is here. They are also known as freshwater lobsters and McGarrity said they’ve been found in south Texas.
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"They may have escaped from a crawfish farm in Mexico and made their way here through canals. They are also sometimes illegally sold as aquarium pets, so that could be the result of someone releasing their aquarium," said McGarrity.
The TPWD has an awareness campaign regarding the disposal of aquatic life kept as pets.
"Really look into re-homing them. Look into pet swaps, aquarium and hobbyist forums. See if you can exchange them with someone. Check and see if the pet store will actually take them back from you. And as a last case scenario, it is preferable to euthanize them instead of putting them into our water bodies," said McGarrity.
The San Marcos Parks Department has a location you can take unwanted aquarium fish for adoption. This pet fish drop off does not take crawfish, but they have taken some aquarium snails and some frogs.
They ask you call the San Marcos Discovery Center before you bring anything to them, to make sure they have room.
Texas Park and Wildlife officials are warning people about a potential threat to the state's ecosystem.
They might not look like much, but marbled crayfish, which have become popular pets, are spreading quickly in environments where they have been introduced, posing a threat to local ecosystems.