Home > Crops & Livestock > Aquaculture > Crawfish > Crawfish Production Manual [Image: crawfish manual] Commercial sales of crawfish in Louisiana date back to the late 1800s, and today's crawfish industry includes millions of pounds harvested from farms and natural habitats in the state. This publication covers a wide range of topics on crawfish production, including crawfish biology, pond design, forage management, stocking, water quality, harvesting, marketing and much more. How to Gain an Edge with Your Crawfish Buyer [Image: Sacks of crawfish in refrigerated coolers] Virtually all crawfish sold by farmers and fishermen are alive. This market necessitates that crawfish remain alive until cooked, which may require several days or longer in some cases. Crawfish News, March 09 (Vol 2, No 2) This newsletter reviews spring trapping and harvesting recommendations, submitting crawfish samples for identification of white spot virus syndrome, how to identify sexually mature, non-growing crawfish, availability of a free crawfish production and marketing record keeping software, and an industry update on a federal Aquaculture Block Grant to assist aquaculture producers adversely affected by high feed costs. Crawfish News, Jan 09 (Vol 2, No 1) This newsletter addresses nuisance wildlife control, proper handling and transport of crawfish to maximize shelf life, environmental factors that could influence the low fall-early winter catch, and the background and history on the Louisiana Crawfish Promotion and Research Board  more articles... Uncertainty in Louisiana Agriculture for 2009 [Image: cookingcrawfish] 2008 had many ups and downs for Louisiana farmers. The outlook was good as the New Year started, but economic and weather conditions didn’t remain favorable. LSU AgCenter economist Kurt Guidry looks back at 2008 and ahead to 2009. Crawfish News, September 2008 (Vol 1, No 5) [Image: crawfish] September 08 Crawfish News. This newsletter addresses fall flooding considerations, storm water management, pumping efficiency and energy cost, and relationship of temperature and crawfish growth. Rains from Hurricane Gustav cause problems for Louisiana crawfish (Distributed 09/05/08) Rain resulting from Hurricane Gustav across the crawfish-producing parishes of Louisiana may cause problems for crawfish producers, according to LSU AgCenter aquaculture specialists Greg Lutz and Mark Shirley. Crawfish News, July 2008 (Vol 1, No 4) [Image: Crawfish News July 2008] July 2008. This newsletter has information on late-summer planting and management of crawfish forage crops, control measures for fall army worms, a brief overview on crawfish reproduction and an annoucement for an upcoming survey on crawfish production economics. Crawfish in the Classroom This 1987 five-page article, written by Jay V. Huner and James E. Barr and published by the Louisiana Sea Grant Program, provides basic biological information on crawfishes, including taxonomy, anatomy, basic physiology, ecology and maintaining crawfish in aquaria for classroom activities. The material is suitable for high school-level biology. Crawfish Lesson Plan K-8th, High School Lab Teachers' resource manual, based on grade level expectations (GLE), using crawfish as the subject model to provide teaching materials for the subject areas of English, Math, Science and Social Studies from grades kindergarden through 8th grade, and high school science laboratory excercises. Louisiana Crawfish Industry Wholesale Prices, 1997-2007 This table provides industry statistics, including dock-side price per pound, for Louisiana farm-raised and wild crawfish. Source of statistics is the Louisiana Summary, Agriculture & Natural Resources, years 1997 through 2007. Reducing Crawfish Pumping Costs [Image: Pump Curve] Farming crawfish requires pumping water. Pumping water costs money. Although there is really no way to get around these facts, we can take action to minimize pumping costs. Crawfish News, May 2008 (Vol 1, No 3) May 2008 Crawfish News. This newsletter provides information on forage planting, liming crawfish ponds, and stocking new, existing, and recently renovated ponds. Economic Impact of Crawfish on Rice in a Rice/Crawfish Rotation [Image: Rice/Crawfish Rotation] This report evaluates the economic impact of crawfish as a rotational crop on the rice enterprise, indentifying specific costs imposed on the rice enterprise unique to crawfish production and presenting relevant economic principles in the assignment of production costs to alternative farm enterprises from a farm accounting perspective. Click for more information...