Clawed creature native to Australia is invading Texas waters. Why experts are worried
There’s a “growing concern” in the wetlands of the Rio Grande Valley as researchers sift through dozens of traps and nets in search of a potential “threat,” according to Texas officials.
Locals in southern Texas reported an “interesting-looking critter” that officials found to be an invasive crayfish species that is “not supposed to be in Texas,” Texas Parks and Wildlife Department biologist Archis Grubh said in a PBS segment on Feb. 9.
The culprit is an Australian redclaw crayfish which has found a home approximately 8,000 miles away near Brownsville and Gonzales.
“These large crayfish can significantly alter habitat and vegetation, competitively exclude native crayfish, and impact native fish communities by direct predation,” Texas Parks and Wildlife said in a 2022 news release. “Australian Redclaw Crayfish can also carry Crayfish Plague as well as other parasites/diseases that could impact native crayfish.”
The species was first spotted in the U.S. in 2013, and more recently in Texas in 2022, though the 2022 sighting was “just the second detection of this species in the wild in the United States” at the time, according to the release. Now, researchers are finding more in the Rio Grande Valley.
While there are over 400 crayfish species in the U.S., this clawed creature in particular is large in size, meaning it could potentially “out-compete” the native species in the area, according to the video.
Redclaw crayfish can lay up to 5,000 eggs each year, the department said.
“The biggest threat that we know of to native crayfish species are invasive crayfish coming into new habitats and actively displacing them,” according to Chris Taylor, a University of Illinois researcher.
The attack on the native species can pose threats to the local food webs, Taylor said.
Experts expect the invasive crayfish to feed on as many fish and plants as possible which could deprive the native species. They can also eat other crayfish, experts said.
Many invasive species end up in U.S. ecosystems when people release aquarium pets that are harmful to native species. The department says aquarium owners should find alternatives to “aquarium dumping” to curb any potential threats.
Researchers are still looking into how big of a threat the current invasion of redclaw crayfish poses. They plan to contain or fully eradicate the species from the area depending upon how many they discover.
Brownsville, which is near the southernmost tip of Texas, is about a 280-mile drive south from Gonzales. Gonzales is about a 75-mile drive east from San Antonio.
This story was originally published February 10, 2025 at 10:19 AM with the headline "Clawed creature native to Australia is invading Texas waters. Why experts are worried."
