There is a lot of debate on this topic, everything from hotdogs to banana skins. The people of Crayster have found that fresh fish with the skins and heads on work the best. We stay away from using predatory fish like pike, bass, and catfish. In our experience, they don't work very well and can even scare your crawfish away. We prefer to use oily fish like trout scraps, salmon heads, and pieces. We have found that even cutting up hole tilapia makes an inexpensive effective bait. We have tested about every kind of bait that you can think of and no matter what anyone tells you hot dogs, cat food, dog food, and some other baits are not near as good. If you want to increase your chances of catching a lot of crawfish, we suggest using good bait.

Most likely, you do. For example, in the United States there are over three hundred species of crawfish. They are found in almost every waterway. This is where your research comes in. Call your local fish and game, tackle, or bait shop. They will steer you in the right direction. Then go out and find your crawfish honey hole. When you find your spot you can catch them on a regular basis providing food and fun for your family! Trust us, they will reproduce faster than you can catch them.

In some states you do and some you don't. Definitely check your local laws and regulations regarding licensing, trap size, permitted baits, legal limits, types and sizes of traps, and more.

Different people say different things. The people of Crayster have all come to the consensus that they taste exactly like lobster. A fact is sometimes restaurants serve crawfish and call it lobster. Yes, that really happens and I have experienced this first hand. They always seem to taste best out of cold water. In some areas, very late summer in shallow water we have been told they can taste a little gamey. Although, we have not experienced that. The amazing thing about crawfish is that the meat can be substituted for any seafood such as shrimp, lobster, or crab. Of course, we all love the flavors in a spicy Cajun crawfish boil!

We don't. We simply sell crawfishing equipment and gear. If you want to buy crawfish, we suggest going to a quality company like Louisiana Crawfish Company. We have tried theirs and they are Crayster approved!

You can fish with a hot dog and a string, if you want to catch a few. But, if you really want to catch enough for a good boil. Here are our suggestions. Get a good trap, some good bait, some good advice, and direction. Have a great time on the journey. When you start catching a bunch you are in for good times and good food!

To set the record straight, Crayster is in full support of catching wild crawfish and is in full support of crawfish farming and the crawfishing industry! But, an invasive species of crawfish is one that is introduced into a new area that can decimate an ecosystem. Many times a foreign crawfish will eliminate native plant and fish species until there is nothing left. If you want to do your own research on this, look up the marble crawfish and its destruction, invasive species of crawfish in the UK, or check out this link to a video produced by Arizona Game and fish on the destruction of environment invasive species of crawfish have done there. Click here to see the video on YouTube. Some areas like in Arizona, if you catch a crawfish it is illegal to even throw it back. Because they have such a problem with the invasive species killing off their native species of fish and plant life.

The true answer to that is we don't even know. In our research, our local Fish and Game said, “It is the only game fish that we don't keep any records on.” We have been told that crawfish can get up to 12” from pincers to tail with 4” long claws. We think they may even get much bigger. The people of Crayster are doing true research on this topic with their Big Claw Competitions. In the competition, people send in pictures of crawfish and claw sizes for prizes and bragging rights. With the Crayster new traps designed to catch lobster-sized crawfish, you never know what we will find.

There are lots of ways to cook crawfish. Our favorite way is to boil them like most people do. You simply take your live crawfish and put them in boiling water for five to seven minutes. When hey turn bright red and are done. You don't want to over cook them. Then, you take them out of the water and get ready to eat. We love to put spice packs in our boils. We use Creole seasoning on them in a cooler. Letting the creole spices steam in for abut ten minutes and serve. We have found that we can catch enough crawfish during the season to eat the tasty meat all year long. We simply boil them, let them cool, and store them in freezer bags in the freezer in their shells. When we are ready to eat some long after the season is over we just rewarm them and enjoy!

In our area and some other areas, there are no limits to catching wild crawfish. You can catch a thousand pounds and no one even cares. Most crawfish populations reproduce faster than they can be caught. Each female crawfish can lay as many as three hundred eggs per year and simply can not in many cases be over fished. Of course, you want to check your local area for limits. Some areas limit number, season, gender, and even sizes of crawfish that you can keep.