Big Water Crayfish

It's Throwback Thursday again. Here's a picture of what was IDed as a Big Water Crayfish. Despite the "big" in their name, they're not what I'd consider big, topping out around 2 inches long. Their small size and preference for residing in flowing water means I've probably overlooked them since seeing this one 7+ years ago.

Although I didn't find a lot about this particular species, it sounds like their genus is mostly omnivorous, eating primarily plants but snacking on very small aquatic animals on occasion. As you might suspect from their overall appearance, crayfish are pretty closely related to lobsters. 

This looks like it was taken with my small point-and-shoot camera; perhaps I could have gotten a slightly better picture from my Lumix. On the other hand, the little fella was underwater (albeit not deep water), so there are limitations on how good a picture I can take.

August 1, 2015 in Bridgewater
Photo 5502811, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)


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