How to discourage relatives overstaying their welcome

Nos4r2 · 13 October 2007, 20:25

Those ebay crayfish traps really do work-there's a river near me with a real problem with the Signal crayfish so I thought I'd give it a try. I'll have them in a drum in the garden for a week before they get cooked but it was too late to do when I got in.

The Jackeens · 13 October 2007, 20:38

Hahahaha

Are they for hire Matt?

(we got a lot of rellies)

Nos4r2 · 13 October 2007, 20:43

It does provide some interesting entertainment-when you go in there they start waving their claws at you...

Limey Linda · 13 October 2007, 21:39

Try a lobster in the toilet or a can of baked beens with an old pair of false teeth.

ian parkes · 13 October 2007, 21:54

\Looks more like some crazy ribbers fetish to me , put one in your drysuit

codprawn · 13 October 2007, 22:45

Nasty dose of crabs you've got there......

ian parkes · 13 October 2007, 23:11

Nos
never heard of signal crayfish , what makes them a problem .
You got them in a river ? do you mean fresh water or estuary . I didnt know crayfish existed in rivers iether .
Is this some new thing thats happening like Japanese seaweed etc

Nos4r2 · 13 October 2007, 23:31

I got them in a river near Cirencester that's used to feed a trout fishery. There are literally thousands in it-you can see them everywhere you look in it. I certainly wouldn't go in there with bare feet as these things are agressive and as numerous as green crabs but with claws almost as big as edible crabs.

This explains it better than I can:-

BBC link

The biggest one currently in my bath is a bit bigger than the one in the pic on there.

The Signal crayfish are the ones you buy precooked now-they are commercially farmed. English white claw crayfish are a protected species.

ian parkes · 13 October 2007, 23:41

Very interesting mate . You learn something new every day so they say .

Still it doesn't sound as bad as they make it sound to me . Ok we have lost many of the native crayfish , but now have plenty of the bigger ones from the USA that are good eating .
It didn't say they were any problem exept fot the fungus wiping out the white claw crayfish .

Niether did it explain what they were doing on trout farms in the first place

Nos4r2 · 14 October 2007, 00:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by ian parkes

Very interesting mate . You learn something new every day so they say .

Still it doesn't sound as bad as they make it sound to me . Ok we have lost many of the native crayfish , but now have plenty of the bigger ones from the USA that are good eating .
It didn't say they were any problem exept fot the fungus wiping out the white claw crayfish .

Niether did it explain what they were doing on trout farms in the first place

Not sure about why they end up on the trout farms but they take everything they can get to as well-the food that fish would eat, small fish etc so they are effectively wiping out everything else in their path. The river I got those from was heaving with them but practically nothing else.

ian parkes · 14 October 2007, 00:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nos4r2

Not sure about why they end up on the trout farms but they take everything they can get to as well-the food that fish would eat, small fish etc so they are effectively wiping out everything else in their path. The river I got those from was heaving with them but practically nothing else.

Dam yanks , even the crayfish eat too much

Good to eat i hope .
Go catch a truckload and bring them down to Padstien , Probably be the best earner this year .

codprawn · 14 October 2007, 00:11

Much like when the grey squirrels came over they replaced the lovely reds.

Sounds to me like we should start selling them to the French - they will eat anything and not only will we make money but rid our waters of these nasties!!!

Limey Linda · 14 October 2007, 00:45

Hey Nos, good catch.
Don't forget to purge them just before cooking

The Jackeens · 14 October 2007, 08:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nos4r2

It does provide some interesting entertainment-when you go in there they start waving their claws at you...

Our relatives are just like that too

Anon

ian parkes · 14 October 2007, 19:09

Just watched Ray Mears cooking some of those crayfish on an open fire .
Did you see his method for preparing them ?

The Jackeens · 14 October 2007, 19:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by ian parkes

Did you see his method for preparing them ?

Don't

Harry Hill does Ray very well

Limey Linda · 14 October 2007, 20:11

Wash em, purge by adding salt to clean water ( this makes them take a dump), boil in seasoned water for 7 mins. allow to cool until water is just warm. Then "pinch some tail and suck some head" Very good.