Spinycheek Crayfish

Faxonius limosus, synonym Orconectes limosus, is a species of crayfish in the family Cambaridae. It is native to the east coast of North America, from Quebec to the lower James River, Virginia, but has also been introduced to Europe. It is known commonly as the spinycheek crayfish or Kamberkrebs in German.

It is unusual in that it lives in silty streams, rather than the clear water usually preferred by crayfish. Like Pacifastacus leniusculus, another invasive North American crayfish, F. limosus carries crayfish plague and is a threat to native European crayfish. However, P. leniusculus displays more aggressive behavior than F. limosus, and has been far more pervasive as an invasive threat.

F. limosus was introduced to Germany in 1890, and has since spread across much of Northern Europe, recently reaching the United Kingdom. It has also spread southwards as far as the Danube in Serbia.

In Europe, F. limosus has been included since 2016 on the list of Invasive Alien Species of Union concern (the Union list). This instructs that this species must not be imported, bred, transported, commercialized, or intentionally released into the environment in the whole of the European Union.