New Approaches to Exploitation and Conservation of Crayfish Populations

The historical analysis of shellfishing for crayfish in Belarus demonstrates the inefficiency of the existing measures for their protection. It is recommended to orient protective measures toward the maintenance of metapopulations within the same basin, rather than the maintenance of individual habitats (subpopulations). The proposed approaches to the conservation and propagation of crayfish are based on intensification of the shellfishery connected with the necessity of taking measures to promote crayfish dispersal. Specific measures aimed at the recovery of populations and the maintenance of their genetic diversity are formulated.