Basic Information

Class: Malacostraca Order: Decapoda Suborder: Astacidea and Parastacoidea Body Length: 3-90cm Crayfish come in many varieties and inhabit places like Europe, Central America, Eastern and Central North America, Eastern and Southern South America, the Korean Peninsula, Northeast Asia, Australia, Oceania, Madagascar, and Japan. Despite their name, crayfish are more closely related to shrimp than crabs. They have a body that looks like a combination of a shrimp and a crab, with a long, slender body like a shrimp and large pincers like a crab. Most people who have seen a crayfish will recognize their red coloration. This red color comes from the pigments in the food they eat. If they are fed food without red pigments, they can turn blue or white. Crayfish have large pincers and a relatively small body. To maintain balance, they use small antennae filled with sand. When they molt, they lose the sand and need to refill it to maintain their balance. You can distinguish between male and female crayfish by the size of their pincers. Males have larger pincers, while females have longer abdominal legs, which they use to carry eggs. The easiest way to tell them apart is by the size of their pincers.