Rare white-clawed crayfish in the North of England given lifeline
Conservation organisers across the North are coming together to save the declining population
A major conservation effort is underway across the North of England to help save the UK’s only native freshwater crayfish from disappearing from rivers and streams.
The white-clawed crayfish was once a familiar part of freshwater life across the country, quietly playing its role in healthy rivers. Today, it is globally endangered, with populations having fallen by an estimated 70–80% in recent decades. Its decline has been driven by pollution, habitat loss, disease and the spread of invasive non-native crayfish.
Now, conservation organisations across the North will play an important role in its recovery.
Working from Lancashire and Teesside in the south to Cumbria and Northumberland in the north, organisations will collaborate as part of a national recovery programme to protect remaining populations of white-clawed crayfish.
Northern partners involved in the project include Eden Rivers Trust, Lune Rivers Trust, West Cumbria Rivers Trust, Ribble Rivers Trust, Tees Rivers Trust, South Cumbria Rivers Trust, Tyne Rivers Trust, the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, the Environment Agency, and Natural England.
Together, they will support vital conservation work across the region, with a focus on crayfish surveys, population monitoring and identifying potential “Ark sites” — safe refuge habitats where white-clawed crayfish can be protected from invasive species and crayfish plague.
Yve Martin, Protected Species Manager at Tyne Rivers Trust, is co-ordinating the work in the North of England and she said: "You've got things like habitat loss, but you've also got links to water quality, so white claw crayfish need really good water quality to be able to survive. And you'll have seen the news at the minute there's a lot of problems that we've got. A lot of things need to be tackled to make sure that the rivers, our waterways are clean enough.
"It's about being part of a system, so rather than looking at the one individual species, it's all of those different links. They're a part of the food chain, so they're going to be predated on by things like otters, heron, that kind of thing. You've also got them moving across the bottom of the watercourse, taking out other smaller invertebrates in there as well, so it's more about the linkage and how they all work together for one system and I think by removing one, you often don't realize that impact that you're going to have further down the line.
"We'll be looking at species monitoring to get a better understanding of the range and the distribution of white claw crayfish across the north of England, how healthy those populations are, but we'll also be doing risk assessments to work out which populations are at the greatest risk and where does action need to happen immediately.
"So this is a longer term project, which we're really lucky to have this funding, and it'll last for three years, so we'll be going up to 2029 which is amazing. But conservation efforts are on-going so you won't start to see a big difference until the populations start breeding. A huge part of this project is setting up these bark sites; so like Noah's Ark, we go, we take the animals, we find safe places where we can put them, and then we'll monitor those populations on those sites where they're away from the signal crayfish.
"Now white claw crayfish might take three or sometimes even four years before they start to breed, so it might be 10 years down the line before we can say, yes, we think this site is successful or no, we don't think the site is successful we need to look at alternative sites. So this is why this project is so important wrking in partnership across the north, we can look for the best possible opportunities for our crayfish."
The wider national recovery programme
The work forms part of a wider national recovery programme, led by The Wildlife Trusts and supported by Natural England’s Species Recovery Programme. The programme brings together around 40 organisations from across England in the largest coordinated effort yet to support the species.
For many people, crayfish may be rarely seen. But beneath the surface of our rivers, burns and streams, they are an important part of the natural balance. As the UK’s largest native aquatic invertebrate, white-clawed crayfish help recycle dead plant and animal matter, support water quality and provide food for other native wildlife, including otters, herons, eels, brown trout and salmon.
For the northern partners, the project is an important opportunity to combine local knowledge, practical conservation skills and scientific expertise across catchments. By working together, the organisations will be able to build a clearer picture of where white-clawed crayfish remain, where populations are most at risk, and where long-term refuge sites could help secure their future.
Stan Smith, head of nature and species recovery at The Wildlife Trusts, said:
“This programme represents a significant milestone for white-clawed crayfish conservation. For the first time, we have the opportunity to coordinate action at a truly national scale, bringing together the expertise of conservationists, scientists and practitioners from across England.
“Through a combination of targeted nature recovery efforts, breeding and reintroduction programmes, and innovative research, we can give this iconic native species a lifeline; together we’re creating the best possible chance for white-clawed crayfish to thrive in healthy English waterways once more.”
Long term project
The programme will run until March 2029 and will support work to monitor surviving populations, understand catchment-scale threats and identify where conservation action can have the greatest impact. Nationally, the project will also support scientific research into crayfish genetics, disease resistance and long-term population resilience.
The project forms part of the Government’s Wild Again: Restoring England’s Wildlife initiative, delivered through Natural England’s Species Recovery Programme, which is supporting projects across England to help recover threatened native species and habitats.
The northern partners will share updates as survey, monitoring and Ark site work progresses.