: any of numerous freshwater decapod crustaceans (especially families Astacidea, Cambaridae, and Parastacidae) resembling the lobster but usually much smaller
Recent Examples on the WebOthers busied themselves looking at dead crayfish that had washed along the shore. Paighten Harkins, The Salt Lake Tribune, 8 Sep. 2022 Understanding the genetic diversity of local crayfish populations could inform conservation strategies going forward, Rayne said. Rina Diane Caballar, Ars Technica, 5 Sep. 2022 Their pincers are narrower and longer than other cave crayfish.Wired, 10 July 2022 Northern water snakes feed mostly on fish and amphibians, such as frogs, said Gibbons, but have also been documented eating lizards, shrews, crayfish, earthworms, insects, and even other northern water snakes. Don Lyman, BostonGlobe.com, 13 July 2022 That lofty ranking is driven largely by the state’s rivers, and its large number of species of freshwater fish, crayfish, mussels, snails, frogs and amphibians. Dennis Pillion | Dpillion@al.com, al, 5 May 2022 The cave-dwelling crayfish lack any pigment and are blind.Wired, 10 July 2022 Unable to push through it on their daily commute, the crayfish largely vanished.New York Times, 1 June 2022 Click here to read more about the UAH crayfish discovery. Paul Gattis | Pgattis@al.com, al, 1 June 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
by folk etymology from Middle English crevis, from Anglo-French creveis, escreveice, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German krebiz crab — more at crab