[CHAPTER IV]

THE CRAYFISH (Cambarus sp.)

LABORATORY EXERCISE

Technical Note.—The crayfish, or crawfish, is found in most of the fresh-water ponds and streams of the United States. (It is not found east of the Hoosatonic River, Mass. In this region the lobster may be used. On the Pacific coast the crayfishes belong to the genus Astacus.) Crayfishes may be taken by a net baited with dead fish, or they may be caught in a trap made from a box with ends which open in, and baited with dead fish or animal refuse of any sort. This box should be placed in a pond or stream frequented by crayfish. If possible the student should study the living animal and observe its habits. Crayfish which are to be kept alive should be placed in a moist chamber in a cool place. They will keep for a longer time in a moist chamber than in water. Some fresh specimens should be injected by the teacher for the study of the circulatory system. A watery solution of coloring matter or, better, of an injecting mass of gelatine (see p. [451]) is injected into the heart through the needle of a hypodermic syringe. For the purpose of injecting, a small bit of the shell may be removed from the cephalothorax above the heart. Specimens which are to be kept for some time should be placed in alcohol or 4% formalin.

External structure (fig. [3]).—Place a specimen in a pan for study. Note that the body, which of course differs much in shape from that of the toad, is also unlike that of the toad in being covered by a hard calcareous exoskeleton, which acts as a covering for the soft parts and also as a place of attachment for the muscles, just as the internal skeleton does in the case of the toad. The body is composed of an anterior part, the cephalothorax, and a posterior part, the abdomen. The cephalothorax is covered above and on the sides by the carapace, which is divided into parts corresponding to the head and thorax of the toad by the transverse cervical suture. The abdomen is composed of segments. How many? The flattened terminal segment is called the telson. Is the cephalothorax composed of segments? Where is the mouth of the crayfish? Where is the anal opening?

Fig. 3.—Ventral aspect of crayfish (Cambarus sp.), with the appendages of one side disarticulated.