Crawdads

Okay guys, Im hoping somebody here is a Vet crayfish catcher =P

All I need to know is what time of year in arizona would be the best time to go snag a few of those babies...

Ty in advance,

Jou

Hey Jou

Welcome aboard !

Well im all over the fishing dude but sorry ive never done crayfish catching.
Thats all about useing nets or cages. I know my fishing buddy has done it when he was younger.
He said there damn tasty Cool

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Hey man, thanks for the reply Very Happy

Yah, I dont do it often but I do have fun doing it... The only problem I have is remembering the time of year that its prime to do it ya know Laughing

Ive never used traps either but I just got a few minnow/crawdad ones as well as a fancy 4' cast net Razz

(Let me tell ya, the cast net is worth the money down here in Arizona... I catch more with it than I do with a pole and most of the time its an accident lol Laughing

)

Might go out this weekend, not sure... If I do Ill be going fishing as well Smile

i've used crayfish for bait before for trout... what kinda info did you want on them? Crayfish/crawfish/crawdad are the same...

When they are really small we catch them by the hundreds in minnow dip nets.

Crayfish are commonly sold and used as bait, either live or with only the tail meat, and are good at attracting channel catfish, largemouth bass, pike and muskie. However, live crayfish may sometimes have their claws removed in order to prevent their keeping fish from biting the hook. Crayfish also easily fall off of the hook, so casting should be slow. (wikipedia)

Remember that if you catch crawfish somewhere and fish them somewhere else that you shouldn't just pour the survivors into the water where you are fishing... Like any newly introduced species there is a chance that they could overtake the ecosystem and damage it!!!

but yeah i've never fish'd with them for catfish.. or fished for catfish in general... so i'm not really of any use...

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Quote:

Crawdad catching 101

Carrie Miner
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 19, 2004 12:00 AM
Although crawdads aren't a native Arizona species, they thrive in the state's lakes and streams -- much to the dismay of biologists at the Arizona Game & Fish Department. Accidentally introduced by anglers as bait, these small crustaceans are decimating aquatic plants and wildlife throughout Arizona. But the ecological misfortune creates at least one beneficial side effect: crawdad fishing. Hunting them only provides hours of entertainment and some tasty eating, but it also doubles as a way to help save the environment.

The Arizona Game & Fish Department offers a pamphlet on crawdads -- they're also known as crayfish -- and a free 25-minute video, "Arizona Lobster: Tips on Catching and Cooking Crayfish" (Download the pamphlet). The video takes potential crawdad anglers into the wild for a quick biology lesson on lake and river ecosystems and for a crawdad fishing and cooking demonstration.

For less than the price of a dinner out and about town, you can pick up a family fishing license, which will enable you to fish for crawdads year-long. You can catch crawdads any time of year, but they tend to be the most active between April and October. Best of all, there is no limit to how many you can catch. And unlike casting a line for trout or other fish, you won't have to wait long before you start reeling in crawdads. If you don't feel like fishing with a hook and line, you can catch these freshwater "lobsters" with handheld dip nets or with crawfish nets you can set and leave overnight -- as long as they are tagged with your name, address and fishing license number.

Some of the most popular crawdad fishing holes include lakes Mary, Ashurst, Hawley, Woods Canyon, Apache, Horseshoe, Bartlett, Roosevelt, Canyon, Saguaro and Pleasant, as well as the many slow-moving steams found in the Tonto, Coconino and Apache-Sitegreaves national forests.

Crawdading Tips
- Crawdads love fatty foods. Some favorite bait used to lure these critters to your line or trap includes chicken, pork and hot dogs.
- Net fishing is easier when it's done in areas with solid rock bottoms.
- Use a fish net with an extended handle to scoop out the mini-lobsters or to catch any crawdad that may release the bait as you reel it in.
- Store crawdads in a bucket or cooler kept out of direct sunlight until you're ready to cook them.
- If you decide to take your catch home, make sure to kill them beforehand and treat them as you would any other raw seafood -- keeping them clean and cold at all times.

This is moreso for catchign the crawdad when they are big enough to eat... soooo i'd say visit these areas before they get too big to use for bait. Hope it helps

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When guns become outlawed only outlaws will have guns.

Hehe, yah I know where to fish for them and read all the AZGFD info, etc...

But it seems that nobody mentions a particular time of the year... Rolling Eyes

I guess ill have to ask some old timers here or find out myself the hard way Evil or Very Mad

Thanks again for the help guys Wink

This might help Cool

I'm often asked which is the best time to catch crayfish. A general rule of thumb is night time. Crayfish are predators with an appetite 500 times greater than a Belgian Tiger! Some species such as the Rusty crayfish have 3 times the appetite of a normal crayfish. It is a very large misconception that crayfish are vegetarians, it is true that they will eat plant life but their primary diet is live fish they can catch. Night time gives the crayfish a huge advantage in catching fish and I've seen adult crayfish catch and eat trout up to 6 inches in length during the daylight. It is pretty amazing how adept hunters crayfish are even during the daylight. They will strike from above, pounce like coyotes, and stalk fish like cats stalking a bird. With the explosive populations of crayfish all across the USA I'm very surprised we even have game fish left for the sportsman and it's true that in many areas the Game Fish have been wiped out. With that said the quick answer is night time trapping is the best unless the Lake is so overrun with crayfish the traps are flooded at the first smell of bait, and there is a lot of Lakes and Rivers like that.

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Crawdads are awesome! Very Happy

And tasty. Mr. Green

The only ones I have caught(haven't done it much) were by hand. Just flip over a rock and grab 'em before they swim away. We used to have some in our creek on our property, but now we don't. Sad

Welcome to the NASF, Jou. Cool

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I catch them all the time up here, both by hand and using home-made crawfish cages. I don't know about timing though because I am in New York, Arizona might have a bit different timing.

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Thanks for all the info...

And that was quite helpful Dave, thx : Very Happy

Yeh I havent gone out and caught them in a long while but now that I have a little more info, I just may go catch some more =)

Ty guys,

Jou