A bit of a pinch

A crayfish will pinch your finger and hold on tight if you give it a chance.

There are 35 reported species of crayfish in Missouri, and 11 of those are found in Southeast Missouri.

Pictured here is a mature White River crayfish that I allowed to pinch my finger. I found it in Scott County on March 6. The White River crayfish is rare in Missouri, but native and prevalent in Southeast Missouri.

Its range runs the length of the eastern border of Missouri along the Mississippi River. This crayfish is very similar to the Red Swamp crayfish, which also is prevalent in Southeast Missouri.

Crayfish are an important food source for many animals. Great blue herons, raccoons, bass, mink, catfish, water turtles, water snakes, river otters and even man will eat crayfish.

Louisiana is famous for the tradition of boiling crayfish in large numbers. Special seasonings are added to the boiling crayfish that turn deep red.

The resulting feast is called a Cajun crayfish boil. The meat inside the crayfish tail is the edible part.