Behaviour
European crayfish feed on worms, aquatic insects, molluscs, and plants.
They are nocturnal, spending the day resting in a burrow. They prefer habitats with high levels of shelter availability. The waters they are found in tend to be soft-bottomed with some sand, and they do not tend to be found in muddy water.
A. astacus become sexually mature after three to four years and a series of moults, and breed in October and November. Fertilised eggs are carried by the female, attached to her pleopods, until the following May, when they hatch and disperse.
The main predators of A. astacus, both as juveniles and adults, are European mink, eels, perch, pike, Eurasian otters, and muskrats. There is also some risk of predation via cannibalism.