Crawfish seasonal movements?

[Lon]

Any info on spawning and movements of crawfish?

Point me in some sort of direction.

[smallieking]

i know that the craws starting getting active around may up here  then in june u still lots of smaller ones scattering from pile to pile    so im not really sure but i think in may sometime     a few years ago while fishing the a cumberland dam  a guy told me a tip that i will never forgot and has added lots of fish to my livewell    well he said that when the sun is high and very hot, bluffs and rocks that stick out of the water become very hot and the craws under them become very active  and they start to come out   well when the sun is out the smallies go to the rocks to find shade  well in this act the craws and smallies cross and its a feeding frenzy   thats all i know about craw movement

[BaitBall]

They get active in early season. I remember reading that crawfish spawn while smallmouth are pre-spawn.  I just read that in a book. I would guess crawfish spawn sometime in May in my area too.  Smallies are spawning in June hear so that all makes sense.

[zachvii]

Another tip with Smallies and Crawfish is when the wind is blowing steady around 10-15 the crawfish will be washed out from under the rocks and boulders along the bank because they can't hold there own.  The smallies are triggered by the wind and will move right up on the bank and the feeding frenzy begins!

[Bass_junky]

Crayfish typically come out of their hibernation at approximately 50-52 deg (may differ slightly depending on your location).  This is also the time of their spawning/breeding season.  Males will display themselves on top of rocks flashing their claws trying to attract females to mate with.  This is the most vulnerable time and the bass know this.

They also change color during the moon phase, so the article stated, from what I remember.  In 2004 basstimes magazine had a series of articles covering this topic, might check it out.

[HesterIsGod]

  Quote

Crayfish typically come out of their hibernation at approximately 50-52 deg (may differ slightly depending on your location).

Yeah this is true but not always. Last year me and a buddy of mine caught a four pound bass in a local pond in 41 degree water with a crawfish sticking out of its throat.