Crayfish in Czech cultural space: the longest documented relationship between humans and crayfish in Europe

Abstract

-The crayfish is an interesting element of cultural history in many regions where this animal plays an important role through its exploitation by humans. The present study provides comprehensive insight into the relationship between humans and crayfish within the Central European regions of Bohemia and Moravia, collectively recognized as the Czech cultural space. The study combines data obtained from Czech and Latin historical literature; archival juristic documents and codes of law; old cooking and fishing journals, books, and textbooks; digitized materials available on the internet; and specialized and scientific publications. Human exploitation of crayfish within the evaluated region has been continuous from prehistory to the present and is thus the oldest in all of Europe. Important moments are displayed on timeline. Key-words:Freshwater invertebrate / exploitation / history / aquaculture / Czech Republic Résumé -L'écrevisse dans l'espace culturel tchèque : la relation la plus longue documentée entre les humains et les écrevisses en Europe. L'écrevisse est un élément intéressant de l'histoire culturelle dans de nombreuses régions où cet animal joue un rôle important grâce à son exploitation par les humains. La présente étude offre un aperçu complet de la relation entre les humains et les écrevisses dans les régions d'Europe centrale de Bohême et de Moravie, collectivement reconnues comme l'espace culturel tchèque. L'étude combine des données obtenues à partir de la litté-rature tchèque et historique latine ; de documents d'archives juridiques et de codes de la loi ; de vieux journaux, livres et manuels de cuisine et de pêche ; de documents numérisés disponibles sur l'Internet ; et de publications spécialisées et scientifiques. L'exploitation humaine des écrevisses dans la région étudiée a été continue depuis la préhistoire jusqu'à aujourd'hui et est ainsi la plus ancienne de toute l'Europe. Les moments importants sont affichés sur un tableau chronologique. Mots-clés :Invertébrés d'eau douce / exploitation / histoire / aquaculture / République Tchèque

Spiny-Cheek Crayfish, Faxonius limosus (Rafinesque, 1817), as an Alternative Food Source

“…Later, the availability and popularity of crayfish for consumption decreased, e.g., owing to a rapid decline in the populations of local species caused by the emergence of crayfish plague in the second half of the 19th century. Hence, consumers started to consider crayfish as a very rare animal [ 1 ]. The second reason for the decrease in the population of European crayfish species was the introduction of spiny-cheek crayfish ( Orconectes [ Faxonius ] limosus [Rafinesque, 1817]), originating in North America, and signal crayfish ( Pacifastacus leniusculus ) into water reservoirs at the end of the 20th century [ 2 ].…”

Ethnoichthyology of freshwater fish in Europe: a review of vanishing traditional fisheries and their cultural significance in changing landscapes from the later medieval period with a focus on northern Europe

“…A specific culture about gear, baits and way of fishing developed, which has been studied by ethnologists [ 187 ], as has the development of crayfish parties [ 186 ]. The history and use of crayfish has also been researched in Central Europe [ 188 ]. In Britain, the native white-clawed crayfish is threatened by the American signal crayfish introduced in the 1970s to export to the Scandinavian food market.…”

Modern ornamental aquaculture in Europe: early history of freshwater fish imports

“…Even if many scientifically undescribed species are traded, we assume that the threshold of 6,700 species is the current number and in the near future will be not significantly exceeded. On the other hand, the popularity of invertebrates including decapod crustaceans and gastropods is rising (Patoka et al 2015a, 2016a; Patoka et al 2017; Patoka et al 2019; Uderbayev et al 2017). Similarly, as with ornamental fish, there are many forms which may be perceived as different taxon by laypeople, scientifically unknown species are traded, and new species are described year by year (e.g.…”