Crayfish stock situation in Bavaria (Germany) - attributes, threats and chances
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Abstract
Freshwater crayfish stocks have been mapped in Bavaria (Germany) since 1983. Recordings include populations and significant environmental data in order to analyse and to assess the species and habitat situations. A data base is maintained using different levels of information coming from own investigations and from other sources. Presence of crayfish in Bavaria is relatively low, actually a little more than 500 proved occurrences are registered. Stocks of the native species Astacus astacus (Linnaeus, 1758) and Austropotamobius torrentium (Schrank, 1803) are numerically dominant in all regions but populations are small, isolated and restricted to remote upstream areas. The introduced European species Astacus leptodactylus Eschscholtz, 1823 and the American crayfish Orconectes limosus (Rafinesque, 1817), Pacifastacus leniusculus (Dana, 1852), and Procambarus clarkii (Girard, 1852) show other characters of population quality and distribution pattern than the native species. The evaluation of stock data and interactions of species documents a low quality state and an endangered situation for the native crayfish which are mainly threatened by the presence of alien species including crayfish plague transfer and competition. However, particular patterns of spatial distribution and habitat separation between alien and native species provide chances to keep a balance between species and to preserve native crayfish in Bavaria. An indispensable precondition for this aim is a continuous observation of crayfish stocks as a base for an adequate management.
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Bohl E. (1999). Crayfish stock situation in Bavaria (Germany) - attributes, threats and chances. Freshwater Crayfish 12(1):765-777. doi:
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