Clamping Down On Crawfish
CRAWFISH, CRAWDADS, MUDBUGS or the scientifically proper “crayfish” — whatever you call ’em, these scrappy finger-pinchers play a major role in fueling bass fisheries. Fisheries like Lake Ray Roberts, which hosts the 2021 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk on June 11-13, where big, green, crawfish-munching largemouth will take center stage.
Accordingly, a peek into the tacklebags of practically any seasoned angler reveals several crawfish imposters designed for various power fishing or targeted presentations. Livewell regurgitations and the occasional antennae protruding from a bass’ gullet bespeak a recent lunch crunch, but how well do we know our craws?
Truth be told, there are not a lot of state-run crawfish studies, although Texas Crawdads (Nathan K. Johnson and Sterling Kendall Johnson), available on Amazon, lays out a good summary and is applicable to other states. Nevertheless, Archis Grubh, aquatic biologist and macroinvertebrate specialist for the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, shared several insightful points.
The self-described “bug” guy describes a common bass forage item with a lot more going on than modeling for crankbait and jig trailer designs. Here’s what Grubh had to say.
WHO’S THERE?
With more than 650 species of crawfish worldwide, Grubh says Texas generally claims 37,
