Procambarus crayfish control: Sterilization of males

How is the evidence assessed?
  • Effectiveness
    50%
  • Certainty
    40%
  • Harms
    0%

Key messages

  • One replicated laboratory study in Italy found that exposing male red swamp crayfish to X-rays reduced the number of offspring they produced by 43%.

 

About key messages

Key messages provide a descriptive index to studies we have found that test this intervention.

Studies are not directly comparable or of equal value. When making decisions based on this evidence, you should consider factors such as study size, study design, reported metrics and relevance of the study to your situation, rather than simply counting the number of studies that support a particular interpretation.

Supporting evidence from individual studies

  1. A replicated laboratory study conducted between 2005 and 2006 in Italy (Aquiloni et al. 2009) found that male red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii, exposed to X-rays had a reduced reproductive ability. The number of offspring they successfully produced was reduced by 43% compared to a control group (no x-ray exposure). X-ray exposure did not affect the males’ survival and mating abilities. Irradiated males had smaller testes and altered sperm production that lasted for at least a year. A total of 122 males were tested, half in a control group with no irradiation. Male crayfish were placed individually inside a plastic tube and exposed to a 6 MeV electron beam for five minutes. Testes and sperm production were measured, as were the number of viable offspring produced post-mating.

    Study and other actions tested
Please cite as:

Aldridge, D., Ockendon, N., Rocha, R., Smith, R.K. & Sutherland, W.J. (2020) Some Aspects of Control of Freshwater Invasive Species. Pages 555-87 in: W.J. Sutherland, L.V. Dicks, S.O. Petrovan & R.K. Smith (eds) What Works in Conservation 2020. Open Book Publishers, Cambridge, UK.

Where has this evidence come from?

List of journals searched by synopsis

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Control of Freshwater Invasive Species

This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:

Control of Freshwater Invasive Species
Control of Freshwater Invasive Species

Control of Freshwater Invasive Species - Published 2017

Control of Freshwater Invasive Species Synopsis

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What Works in Conservation provides expert assessments of the effectiveness of actions, based on summarised evidence, in synopses. Subjects covered so far include amphibians, birds, mammals, forests, peatland and control of freshwater invasive species. More are in progress.

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