Conservationists have released almost 200 white-clawed crayfish — one of the UK’s most endangered native species — into the wild to help boost the rare crustacean’s dwindling numbers.
Experts from Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust and Bristol Zoological Society released the crayfish into a safe section of the River Itchen’s upper reaches in a coordinated effort to safeguard the species’ future.
The crustaceans, which are the UK’s only native freshwater crayfish species, had been reared from eggs by the Bristol Zoological Society, to ensure they had a good chance of survival when released into the wild.
Altogether, 192 crayfish were released in time for the breeding season.
Despite once being common and widespread in British rivers and stream, white-clawed crayfish numbers have declined dramatically by at least 70% across the UK since the 1970s. This decline has been even more severe in Hampshire.
They are currently threatened with extinction due to pollution, habitat loss and, most prominently, the spread of invasive crayfish species, such as North American signal crayfish, which carry crayfish plague, a disease that is deadly to our native species.
The release forms part of Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust’s Southern Chalkstreams Project, which aims to protect chalk stream habitats and the species that call them home, especially white-clawed crayfish.
Dr Ben Rushbrook, the Trust’s principal ecologist who leads on the white-clawed crayfish conservation project, said:
“This, and earlier releases have allowed us to extend the range of white-clawed crayfish on this catchment of the River Itchen.
“This will increase the species’ long-term security by providing it a degree of resilience to the impacts of potential threats, such as pollution."
With funding from The Vitacress Conservation Trust, the Trust’s Southern Chalkstream Project has contributed to the release of over 1,400 captive-born white-clawed crayfish in the past eight years.
As well as Bristol Zoological Society, partners on the project include Natural England and the Environment Agency.
The presence of white-clawed crayfish indicates a healthy ecosystem as the freshwater invertebrates require clean, well oxygenated and nutrient-rich waters.
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