page_title: Crayfish plague
section_title: Transmission
hierarchical_section_title: Crayfish plague / Transmission
caption_attribution_description: Signal Crayfish Pacifastacus leniusculus ("American Crayfish") caught in Grand Union Canal, England, near its infill from the River Nene
context_page_description: Crayfish plague is a water mold that infects crayfish, most notably the European Astacus which dies within a few weeks of being infected. When experimentally tested, species from Australia, New Guinea and Japan were also found to be susceptible to the infection.
context_section_description: Implantations of the signal crayfish were  the reason for the spread of the disease to United Kingdom and Ireland. Transport of signal crayfish, red swamp crayfish and infected native European freshwater crayfish between waters is the main cause for contamination. Transmission of the disease through items that has been in contact with contaminated water, such as a fishing tool or footwear, is also possible. The spores are also sensitive to high or low temperatures. Most authorities have local rules and regulations that the amount of water moved between different waters (in for example a boat) is minimised. It is usually also recommended to only use fishing bait from the same lake when fishing, alternatively freeze it to at least −10 °C (14 °F) for one day before use, if risk for contamination exists. The spores of crayfish plague disappear from an infected water system (connected lakes and rivers) in a few weeks after the last infected crayfish is gone. Reintroduction is then possible, as long as no infected waters are in contact with the lake.
caption: Signal crayfish, rear view, from Grand Union Canal near its inflow/overflow with the River Nene.
exif: {"Image ImageDescription": "", "Image Make": "NIKON", "Image Model": "E4300", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "300", "Image YResolution": "300", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "E4300v1.4", "Image DateTime": "2006:08:06 14:12:52", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image ExifOffset": "284", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "300", "Thumbnail YResolution": "300", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "4084", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "4437", "EXIF ExposureTime": "10/1183", "EXIF FNumber": "49/10", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "100", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2006:08:06 14:12:52", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2006:08:06 14:12:52", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "2", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "3", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, auto mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "24", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "1024", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "768", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "1026", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "0", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "114", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF GainControl": "None", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Normal", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal", "EXIF SubjectDistanceRange": "0"}