Life cycle
- The male and the female mate.
- The female lays hundreds of eggs. The female will hold the eggs under her long swimmeretes.
- The eggs hatch in about 2-20 weeks. A small crayfish emerges which has all the same structures of an adult crayfish. The crayfish leaves its mothers protection in 1-2 weeks after it hatches from the egg. Many baby crayfish are eaten because they are so small.
- The crayfish will grow and sheds its exoskeleton often. The process is called molting. A crayfish reaches adult size in 3-4 months & its life span is 3-8 years long. They grow old quickly.
- The crayfish will either mate and start the process over again, or it will die.
Crayfish with eggs.
Baby crayfish.
Adult crayfish.
