FRESHWATER CRAYFISH
Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: Freshwater Fishing
Forum Name: Coarse Fishing
Forum Description: Anything coarse here....
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=43825
Printed Date: 26 Jan 2026 at 2:45pm
Topic: FRESHWATER CRAYFISH
Posted By: howzit_kzn
Subject: FRESHWATER CRAYFISH
Date Posted: 07 Aug 2009 at 6:01pm
| HI guys hope yourll all doing well and fishing is great, now i need help, where can i get these freshwater crayfish from im in auckland in the north shore? |
Replies:
Posted By: felixx
Date Posted: 09 Aug 2009 at 11:02am
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what do you want to do with them ------------- Originally posted by TG LMAO felixx, you a sick puppy! hehe |
Posted By: herby
Date Posted: 09 Aug 2009 at 5:14pm
| Lake Otatoa |
Posted By: howzit_kzn
Date Posted: 09 Aug 2009 at 5:30pm
| hi guys thanks for the reply, i want to put one or two in a water garden im building at home its quiet big and the pet shop has them for $30 bucks each so i thought id get them myself |
Posted By: howzit_kzn
Date Posted: 09 Aug 2009 at 5:38pm
| another thing are you allowed to catch them? |
Posted By: felixx
Date Posted: 09 Aug 2009 at 9:11pm
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don't tell me that a fella cant go get a couple of crawlies now...
hell this bloody 2 systems in one country is ridiculous ------------- Originally posted by TG LMAO felixx, you a sick puppy! hehe |
Posted By: orange ruffie
Date Posted: 10 Aug 2009 at 9:21am
| they taste good too i get them out south |
Posted By: snapper mad
Date Posted: 11 Aug 2009 at 9:39am
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Hi when i was a kid we went to ness valley hunting for goats and i found them in the creek. No hunting there now. Not sure if you are allowed to take them. ------------- If i fished like i lied i`d be good |
Posted By: michael29973
Date Posted: 11 Aug 2009 at 5:20pm
ive got millions of them in a creek that runs through my house but sadly i live in wellington.. 
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Posted By: howzit_kzn
Date Posted: 11 Aug 2009 at 5:44pm
| damn wish thats creek was in auckland..there is know restrictions in taking them?if you can buy it at the pet shop |
Posted By: michael29973
Date Posted: 11 Aug 2009 at 6:07pm
| The only place I know you can't take them is lake taupo - I think thats the only area though |
Posted By: Youngfisherman
Date Posted: 12 Aug 2009 at 7:56am
| Im sure no one will mind you taking a couple for your garden though... |
Posted By: Finatic
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2009 at 9:53am
Mate, I've got the perfect place for you! The creek that runs down through the bottom of Parkhill Road in Birkenhead has a fair few as well as mature inanga (Galaxiidae) aka native trout. I used to live in Berne Place and the creek ran through our property. The upper reaches seemed to have a higher population of lobster as there were more pools. There is no public access to the creek from Berne Place, but you can take the track that is about half way down Parkhill Rd on the left hand side and head off to the left when you get to the bridge over the creek. You'll come to a 'Y' junction (big pine tree to your left) somewhere along the line. Turn left and head up the creek. There's a nice big pool (20 - 30mins walk if that) that had plenty. Use a small hook with a small piece of bacon or steak and you should be in. Used to eat them and they tasted beautiful! There are some pretty big eels in that creek too. We used to catch them day and night. Go at night and you may come across the glow worms  .------------- What's the cheapest type of meat? Dear balls. They're under a buck. |
howzit_kzn wrote:Posted By: Tagit
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2009 at 9:58am
I hope that you are referring to the Koura there
 . I have heard that those 'native trout' are keen on a small bit of bacon also. I lived in Parkhill Rd for years and never knew the Koura were there. Bugger!!!
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Posted By: Finatic
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2009 at 10:16am
Didn't see a lot of the native trout, mostly saw them close to home in the evenings/night. They were big as far as those things grow.
------------- What's the cheapest type of meat? Dear balls. They're under a buck. |
Posted By: Tomatron
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2009 at 5:45pm
| Go buy one of those green trap style nets, if they are there then you will get them, best to get them at night to the seem a bit less shy. And take enough home for a feed too! they are tasty lil critters |
Posted By: Goneburger
Date Posted: 18 Nov 2009 at 8:01pm
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Posted By: Standard Deluxe
Date Posted: 19 Nov 2009 at 11:00am
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That sounds awesome Finatic, just up the road from me. I've had a walk up a few of the local streams an there is quite a bit of life in them, they have done a great job cleaning them up and planting. Not sure about whether you can legally take them (Koura) or how many, I know you used to be able too but now they are under the jurisdiction of DOC, waiting on them to call me back and will post what they say. Might find that the native ones are protected or customary rights only but the imported red claw crays are fair game - I think they are bigger too, which helps if you're greedy like me!
L.
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Posted By: Standard Deluxe
Date Posted: 02 Dec 2009 at 1:38pm
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A bit late on the response but you can take them, 50 per day per person, no size limit restrictions but there may be some local legality from local governers like Taupo etc.
Hopefully I get some time to go and pick some this weekend. Thanks for the tip on catching them too Finatic, I was just going to make a boxed net and pick it up the next day, but more likely never see it again haha
More fun fishing for them, might take the kids from next door with me, keep them out of trouble for a few hours!
Any tips on cooking them?
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Posted By: Bobby
Date Posted: 07 Dec 2009 at 12:27am
| Hey there i caught afew crawlies/koura/freshwater crayfish in a local stream and was wondering if i could put them in warm water such a a tropical fish tank its not to warm also in aussie they have freshwater crayfish that look identical in tropical tanks any feedback on this would be great ...also if any1 nos were i could get blue ones in NZ as ive seen in videos thtd also be great thanks guys. |
Posted By: felixx
Date Posted: 08 Dec 2009 at 10:27am
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I remember reading about the blue ones, I think they often go green/black next moult ------------- Originally posted by TG LMAO felixx, you a sick puppy! hehe |
Posted By: ancient mariner
Date Posted: 17 Dec 2009 at 6:01am
They make the perfect snapper baits!  ------------- NGATI PAKEHA I was born here too! |
Posted By: roddholder
Date Posted: 18 Dec 2009 at 9:50pm
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juciy, where did you get the 50 per person limit from?. the restrictions on taking koura were lifted some time ago due to an omission in the freshwater fishery legislation. as far as i know there is no limit and the taking of them is permitted. they are however a living being and should be treated with respect, not to be held in captivity for your amusment. let them stay where they are. < id="gwProxy" ="">< ="jsCall;" id="jsProxy" =""> ------------- she was only a fishermans daughter, but she reeled at the sight of my rod!. |
Posted By: Dark Horse
Date Posted: 28 Apr 2010 at 9:47pm
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caught these little critters the other day on our farm.. they give yah a decent nip if they catch your finger! taste amazing though http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4560302922/ - http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4560302922/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4559672821/in/photostream/ - http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4559672821/in/photostream/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4559672149/in/photostream/ - http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4559672149/in/photostream/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4559671483/in/photostream/ - http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4559671483/in/photostream/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4559670879/in/photostream/ - http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4559670879/in/photostream/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/49730537@N06/4560302922/ -
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Posted By: DuckFather
Date Posted: 29 Apr 2010 at 1:31am
| where can i get these i wellington? one of the boys keeps pestering me to take him out for some, says they are a meeean feed. |
Posted By: big blue
Date Posted: 29 Apr 2010 at 6:58am
| wear i go on holiday each year we catch heaps of them, cook them up and they are tasty as if you fry them in a little butter and garlic, we had people coming from other campsites asking what the smell was...............they are tassssty |
Posted By: Youngfisherman
Date Posted: 29 Apr 2010 at 8:06am
| Dude those looking amazingly good willie, look better than crays |
Posted By: aji_tsuri
Date Posted: 29 Apr 2010 at 1:38pm
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I'm getting excited!! Supposedly you can catch them with a big bunch of twigs and branches and some bait (if you don't have a trap). Basically get some bait and put it in the middle of the twigs and tie it up in a bunch and then drop it in on a rope. Next day lift it out. The koura craw in between the twigs/branches trying to get to the bait and get stuck/can't be bothered leaving. |
Posted By: Espresso
Date Posted: 29 Apr 2010 at 2:15pm
| Many moons ago in Taupo, we'd go around some rocky shorelines, turn over rocks carefully and manage to grab them if ya quick...boiled in a pot on campfire, incredibly edible. |
Posted By: jamesdaulton
Date Posted: 29 Apr 2010 at 2:43pm
| Yep. We used to get them from the boat harbor in Taupo... my mates had customary rights. We used a ball of tangled thread around some stinky old meat for bait, + a rock sinker and handline. The greedy little buggers will hold on to the bait if you lift them gentley untill the surface of the water at which stage you slip a butterly net under them- made out of your mums stockings and a coat hanger. As previously mentioned a bit of garlic and butter and you've got poor mans scampi! |
Posted By: Dark Horse
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2010 at 8:59am
| Yea we catch them by walking up the stream an turning over logs and stuff then grabbing them on their back, Suposibly they aren't able to be able to grad you with their nippers their but i swear some a double jointed! I reacon they taste just like crayfish just sweeter ... |
Posted By: felixx
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2010 at 10:33am
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they are big buggers you got mate, Well done!
I will have to go check my secret spot and see if I can find a bigger one..
------------- Originally posted by TG LMAO felixx, you a sick puppy! hehe |
Posted By: aji_tsuri
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2010 at 3:00pm
| Wow! They're beasts! I've only ever seen ones half that size. Are they from a large pool? |
Posted By: JordanM
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2010 at 10:07pm
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people farm them in their rice paddys... ------------- "size doesnt matter" tell that to the fisheries! |
Posted By: lemmy
Date Posted: 02 May 2010 at 8:52am
 Wow Willie those have got to be the biggest Freshwater bugs I have ever seen.
Probaly a good place to post a warning if anyone see,s one of these type of Freshwater crays to contact your local D.O.C of M.A.F office the major difference is the claws are smooth instead of spiny they are an imported threat to our native ones , it was,nt that many years ago a kid picked one up outside a gas station in West Auckland so they are still out there maybe.
http://www.biosecurity.govt.nz/files/pests/marron/marron-divers-card.pdf - http://www.biosecurity.govt.nz/files/pests/marron/marron-divers-card.pdf
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Posted By: skidoggg
Date Posted: 04 May 2010 at 7:19am
| woh willy they look deliscymo ! mite have to have a looksie under a few rocks next time im out in the bush , are you finding them in the stiller pools or moreso the flowing water? |
Posted By: mozz
Date Posted: 06 May 2010 at 6:08am
| piha stream has them too. I bet they wont last very long in your aquarium thing either. They like to wander around a bit |
Posted By: felixx
Date Posted: 06 May 2010 at 10:24am
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I had one in an aquarium whan I was a kid.
It ate my fish :(
Then mum took it out and put it in a glass so we could sort a new home for it.
When we got home, the sun had moved and nippy was dead ------------- Originally posted by TG LMAO felixx, you a sick puppy! hehe |
Posted By: skidoggg
Date Posted: 08 May 2010 at 4:55pm
| went out lookin for these critters today , took the kids and a butterfly net,found a nice rocky stream and stated lookin under rocks and logs etc , caught a cupla eels that was all she wrote. went to another stream where i had seen a small one once befor and asked the park ranger if it was ok but no regional park outa bounds for takin the koura. he said they were only small critters in the stream and he used to get them around the edges of lakes with torches at night ...aah well was a nice walk in the bush with the kids anyway ! |
Posted By: aji_tsuri
Date Posted: 16 Jun 2010 at 11:49am
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Just in case I get out sometime after these, anybody got any guidelines (other than the bag limit of 50)?
1. What is a suitable size to take, etc? - In the unlikelihood that you did get a decent amount (or anything near the 50 limit) you wouldn't really want to end up taking a bunch of juvenile ones effecting the population.
Things I'd presume:
2. Release any in berry (except those with smooth claws) to protect the population
3. Keep any with smooth claws (and let DOC know). I presume the ones with smooth claws are just as edible.
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Posted By: aji_tsuri
Date Posted: 16 Jun 2010 at 12:22pm
Its not an obvious bag limit! 50 is the the combined bag limit for "Other Shellfish". A seach on the MFish website reveals that Koura (freshwater crayfish) was previously listed as one othe other shellfish. However, the definition now for the "Other Shellfish" doesn't actually mention Koura, it just states "• This is a combined, mixed-species bag limit. It applies to all shellfish species not specifically named above and includes paddle crabs." You may be right that there is no limit, but probably MFish should clarify but some may say that the definition is quite obvious (I don't as I, like probably a lot of people, would look for Koura and not find it).
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Posted By: squid4life
Date Posted: 11 Jan 2011 at 9:03pm
| does anyone have any hints or tips on getting them? any streams around whangarei? |
Posted By: Seth
Date Posted: 12 Jan 2011 at 10:36am
| Almost any small stream will have them, but try around the paraki hills area. If you dont have a net cut some ti tree bush, put some oily meat in the middle and throw in the creek overnight. Come back the next day and should have a heap stuck in them |
Posted By: Moistpipi
Date Posted: 21 Dec 2011 at 11:18am
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Just make sure the water isn't any warmer than where you found them. I always caught them by finding a stream (any stream), Finding a small pool with mud on the bottom, Then just lift up small to medium rocks to find them. Just make sure you put the rock back afterwards. I think blue one's mainly come from down south as the water were i've found them in wellington has been quite chilly. If you keep looking eventualy you will find one though.
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Posted By: AquaponicsXX
Date Posted: 10 Sep 2013 at 11:12pm
I am living in Wellington. Could you please show me where you got those freshwater crayfish? I just built an aquaponics system at my backyard and would like some freshwater crayfish to put in my water tank. You could email me at [email protected] Thanks a lot. I am looking forward to hearing from you. Xiang
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Posted By: Johnson
Date Posted: 31 Jan 2017 at 5:08pm
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Hi, everybody. Finally where can find a koura in Auckland? I went to the Birkenhead this week, it is a war park, didn't see any pool in it. Only some very small creeks. Please email me if you know i i can see it. Thanks. [email protected] |
Posted By: Reel Deal
Date Posted: 01 Feb 2017 at 1:04pm
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im thinking one of Worksux crab pots left over night in a deep pool should give some reward? ------------- The gods do not subtract from the allotted span of men's lives the hours spent on fishing - Assyrian Proverb |
Posted By: taurangatroutmaster
Date Posted: 17 Feb 2017 at 12:43pm
| any koura that are in streams around auckland or any other big city for that matter should be left alone. if they come out of small streams they are usually tiny anyway. these small streams are fragile eco systems and if all the punters start taking from them it wont take long to wipe them out. i wonder if most people have any real respect for our native fauna. if you must take them to eat go to the rotorua lakes, plenty of big ones in there and a big enough population that your not going to wipe a small streams population out |
Posted By: AdventureGeek
Date Posted: 20 Feb 2017 at 12:18am
| Hey friends I have just built a pond and have been searching for where I could get a few Koura to put in it...my kids are crazy to catch 1 and would love to have an experience of watching a few on our pond. I am in South Auckland but have never found a spot to see these crays. Does anyone know a exact stream/ spot please email me on [email protected] very much appreciated. |
Posted By: makka
Date Posted: 20 Feb 2017 at 8:51am
| I would be very careful who you share locations with on an open forum |
Posted By: andy101
Date Posted: 25 Feb 2017 at 9:50pm
| a creek that is running through your house is not good for resale . |
Posted By: where crayfish
Date Posted: 25 Feb 2019 at 5:55pm
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hey guys, i just went to park hill road and parked right beside the sign that was the reserve then i went in turned left and kept on walking and i eventually say three little pools put my trap down there and came back next morning and nothing there  so where is this spot with loads of crayfish ( i am going to release it into my pond)
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