Ecology Summary - Astacus astacus

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Ecology of Astacus astacus

Main Ref.	Hildyard, A. and M. Cavendish, 2001
Remarks	Occurs in a wide variety of habitats, from streams and rivers to lakes, usually in well-oxygenated waters with sufficient foliage cover (daytime retreat under rocky or woody debris and dense foliage); also burrows on stream banks. An opportunistic feeder on living and dead plant and animal matter. Living aquatic insects, crustaceans, worms, sponges, bryozoans and mollusks are preferred with the crayfish crushing prey with their lower jaws. Birds, mammals and fish prey on the noble crayfish.

Main Ref.

Hildyard, A. and M. Cavendish, 2001

Remarks

Occurs in a wide variety of habitats, from streams and rivers to lakes, usually in well-oxygenated waters with sufficient foliage cover (daytime retreat under rocky or woody debris and dense foliage); also burrows on stream banks. An opportunistic feeder on living and dead plant and animal matter. Living aquatic insects, crustaceans, worms, sponges, bryozoans and mollusks are preferred with the crayfish crushing prey with their lower jaws. Birds, mammals and fish prey on the noble crayfish.

Aquatic zones / Water bodies

	Marine - Neritic	Marine - Oceanic	Brackishwater	Freshwater
Marine zones / Brackish and freshwater bodies	supra-littoral zone littoral zone sublittoral zone	epipelagic mesopelagic epipelagic abyssopelagic hadopelagic	estuaries/lagoons/brackish seas mangroves marshes/swamps	rivers/streams lakes/ponds caves exclusively in caves

Highighted items on the list are where Astacus astacus may be found.

Habitat

Substrate	Benthic: mobile; Hard Bottom: rocky;
Substrate Ref.	Hildyard, A. and M. Cavendish, 2001
Special habitats	vegetation ( leaves, driftwood );
Special habitats Ref.	Hildyard, A. and M. Cavendish, 2001

Associations

Ref.	Soderback, B., 1992
Associations	parasitism;
Associated with	Aphanomyces astaci.
Association remarks	Aphanomyces astaci is a lethal fungus that caused the crayfish plague which was responsible for the decline in the crayfish population for the last century.
Parasitism

feeding

Feeding type	mainly animals (troph. 2.8 and up)
Feeding type Ref.
Feeding habit	variable
Feeding habit Ref.

Trophic Level(s)

Estimation method	original sample		unfished population		Remark
Estimation method	Troph	s.e.	Troph	s.e.	Remark
From diet composition
From individual food items	2.00	0.00			Trophic level and s.e. inferred from exclusive plant/detritus food items.
Ref.

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