Mudbug

During the last month of school, my older son's class was working on a natural science unit about crustaceans.  For their studies, the third grade teachers brought in a passel of live crayfish, and as the final days of school approached, a call was put out that the crayfish would need homes.  Guess who brought one home on the last day of school?

Little Mr. was terribly excited about his new pet (and so was the cat.) Mr. Bloom and I were less excited.

Still, I love the tiny scraps of paper I found around the house with little sketches of crayfish, and I enjoy all the information my son has been sharing with me.  Some facts about crayfish (also known as crawfish, crawdads, mudbugs and yabbies):

-- Crayfish are members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea. They are freshwater crustaceans resembling small lobsters, to which they are related. They breathe through feather-like gills and are found in bodies of water that do not freeze to the bottom such as brooks and streams where there is fresh water running, and which have shelter against predators.

-- There are over 540 species worldwide of crayfish.

-- Our crayfish is of the genus Pacifastacus,  native to western North America.

-- Most U.S. species of crayfish can grow up to 6 inches and they have a life span of about 2-3 years.

-- They are omnivorous and will eat small fish, shrimp and plants.  We feed ours an aquatic plant called elodia.

-- Crayfish are commonly used at bait by fishermen and are also used for preparing popular regional dishes in the U.S., Mexico, Spain, France, Scandinavian countries, Russia, Australia, China, and Nigeria.