On 3/8/2024 9:54 AM, Technobarbarian wrote:

Yet another "crisis".

"Louisiana governor issues disaster declaration for crawfish shortage
amid extreme weather and drought"

"Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry issued a disaster declaration Wednesday for
the state?s critical crawfish industry, as extreme weather disrupted
this year?s harvest and triggered a shortage of the tiny crustaceans.

Louisiana is the country?s top producer of crawfish ? a staple in Gulf
Coast cuisine such as crawfish étouffée, gumbos and po-boys. The brick-
red creatures have been harvested commercially in Louisiana since the
1800s, and the industry brings in ?more than $300 million for the
state?s economy each year.

Early estimates from Louisiana State University?s Agriculture Center
showed potential losses to the state?s crawfish industry could be nearly
$140 million for this year?s harvest season. But the economic blow could ultimately be higher, said Mark Shirley, a crawfish specialist at the
center. While crawfish production has increased in recent months, the industry?s numbers remain ?disastrously low,? he told CNN.

The shortage also affected Mardi Gras. Carnival season usually attracts tourists to New Orleans from all over the world, where they tend to
gorge on the state?s classic seafood boils that typically include pounds
of freshly cooked crawfish. It?s also a popular staple during Lent
season, when most of Louisiana?s Catholics seek seafood alternatives to
meat.

Mike Strain, commissioner of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, lamented the blow to Mardi Gras this year in a late-February
letter to the US Department of Agriculture that requested federal
relief.

?Mardi Gras 2024 was still celebrated, but this time without abundant
and affordable crawfish,? Strain wrote. ?For the first time in many
years, due to sustained drought in 2023 and freezing temperatures in
early 2024, crawfish are simply unavailable.?

https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/07/climate/louisiana-crawfish-disaster-us- climate/index.html?iid=cnn_buildContentRecirc_end_recirc

We have plenty of wild crawdads in Oregon and anyone can pick them
up for free. These are the regulations for non-commercial harvest.

"Nongame Fish and Shellfish ? Freshwater

Bullfrogs
Harvest Method: Angling, hand, bow and arrow, spear, gig, spear gun, dip
net.
No angling license is required.
Open all year
No bag limit

Crayfish
Harvest Method: Hand, baited lines (no hooks allowed), net, rings and
traps.
No angling or shellfish license is required.
Open all year in all streams including streams listed as closed.
See exception for The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Reservation.
Bag limit is 100 crayfish per day, 3 daily limits in possession."

https://www.eregulations.com/oregon/fishing/general-statewide- regulations#:~:text=Open%20all%20year%20in%20all,3%20daily%20limits% 20in%20possession.

It would take a while to collect 100 crawdads if you're just using
your hands to catch them, but most places, it would be easy to trap that many, if you're willing to spend a couple of dollars for bait. If you
punch some holes in a can of cat food that can be very effective.

TB

They aren't "crawdads" or "crayfish". They are crawfish in the south and
FYI, it's not just Louisiana having a shortage, we in southeast Texas
have been hit hard as well.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)