Astacidae is a

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

of freshwater

crayfish Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans belonging to the clade Astacidea, which also contains lobsters. In some locations, they are also known as crawfish, craydids, crawdaddies, crawdads, freshwater lobsters, mountain lobsters, rock lobsters, mu ...

native to

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

western North America Western North America is the western edge of the North American continent that borders the Pacific Ocean. It consists of Alaska at the farthest north, down through the western Canadian province of British Columbia, the western U.S. states of W ...

. The family is made up of four extant (living)

genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ...

: The genera ''

Astacus ''Astacus'' (from the Greek , ', meaning "lobster" or "crayfish") is a genus of crayfish found in Europe and western Asia, comprising three extant (living) species and three extinct fossil species. Due to the crayfish plague, crayfish of thi ...

'' (which includes the

European crayfish ''Astacus astacus'', the European crayfish, noble crayfish, or broad-fingered crayfish, is the most common species of crayfish in Europe, and a traditional food source. Like other true crayfish, ''A. astacus'' is restricted to fresh water, livi ...

), ''

Pontastacus ''Pontastacus'' is a genus of freshwater crayfish occurring in eastern Europe and western Asia. Classification and phylogeny ''Pontastacus'' belongs to the family Astacidae, one of the three families of Northern Hemisphere freshwater crayfish wi ...

'' (which includes the Turkish crayfish), and ''

Austropotamobius ''Austropotamobius'' is a genus of European crayfish in the family Astacidae. It contains four extant species, and one species known from fossils of Barremian age: *'' Austropotamobius bihariensis'' Pârvulescu 2019 — Idle crayfish *'' Austropo ...

'' are all found throughout Europe and parts of western

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

, while ''

Pacifastacus ''Pacifastacus'' is a genus of crayfish native to western North America (USA and Canada), containing six species, two of which are extinct: *†'' Pacifastacus chenoderma'' (fossil: Miocene – Pliocene) *'' Pacifastacus connectens'' *'' Pacifast ...

'' is found on the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

coast of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

and includes the

signal crayfish The signal crayfish (''Pacifastacus leniusculus'') is a North American species of crayfish. It was introduced to Europe in the 1960s to supplement the North European ''Astacus astacus'' fisheries, which were being damaged by crayfish plague, but ...

and the

Shasta crayfish ''Pacifastacus fortis'' (known as the Shasta crayfish or placid crayfish) is an endangered crayfish species endemic to Shasta County, California, where it is found only in isolated spots on the Pit River and Fall River Mills. The exact subpopula ...

Classification and Phylogeny

Astacidae belongs to the superfamily

Astacoidea Astacoidea is superfamily of freshwater crayfish that live in the Northern Hemisphere. The other superfamily of crayfish, Parastacoidea, lives in the Southern Hemisphere. Astacoidea consists of three families: Astacidae (from Europe and weste ...

, which contains all

in the

Northern Hemisphere The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the Equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined as being in the same celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the solar system as Earth's Nort ...

. Astacoidea is the

sister taxon In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and t ...

Parastacoidea The Parastacidae are the family of freshwater crayfish found in the Southern Hemisphere. The family is a classic Gondwana-distributed taxon, with extant members in South America, Madagascar, Australia, New Zealand, and New Guinea, and extinct ta ...

, which contains all crayfish of the Southern Hemisphere. Crayfish and

lobster Lobsters are a family (biology), family (Nephropidae, Synonym (taxonomy), synonym Homaridae) of marine crustaceans. They have long bodies with muscular tails and live in crevices or burrows on the sea floor. Three of their five pairs of legs ...

s together comprise the

infraorder Order ( la, ordo) is one of the eight major hierarchical taxonomic ranks in Linnaean taxonomy. It is classified between family and class. In biological classification, the order is a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms and ...

Astacidea Astacidea is an infraorder of decapod crustaceans including lobsters (though not "lobsters" such as the spiny lobster etc.), crayfish, and their close relatives. Description The Astacidea are distinguished from most other decapods by the presen ...

, as shown in the simplified

cladogram A cladogram (from Greek ''clados'' "branch" and ''gramma'' "character") is a diagram used in cladistics to show relations among organisms. A cladogram is not, however, an evolutionary tree because it does not show how ancestors are related to d ...

below: The internal

phylogeny A phylogenetic tree (also phylogeny or evolutionary tree Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, MA.) is a branching diagram or a tree showing the evolutionary relationships among various biological spe ...

of Astacidae can be further shown in the cladogram below:

Species

The family Astacidae contains the following

and

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

: *''

'' Fabricius, 1775 **''

Astacus astacus ''Astacus astacus'', the European crayfish, noble crayfish, or broad-fingered crayfish, is the most common species of crayfish in Europe, and a traditional food source. Like other true crayfish, ''A. astacus'' is restricted to fresh water, liv ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1775) - Europe - "European crayfish" **''

Astacus balcanicus ''Astacus'' (from the Greek , ', meaning "lobster" or "crayfish") is a genus of crayfish found in Europe and western Asia, comprising three extant (living) species and three extinct fossil species. Due to the crayfish plague, crayfish of thi ...

'' (Karaman, 1929) -

Republic of Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Yugoslavia. It ...

and

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

**''

Astacus colchicus ''Astacus'' (from the Greek , ', meaning "lobster" or "crayfish") is a genus of crayfish found in Europe and western Asia, comprising three extant (living) species and three extinct fossil species. Due to the crayfish plague, crayfish of thi ...

'' Kessler, 1876 -

Georgia (country) Georgia (, ; ) is a transcontinental country at the intersection of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is part of the Caucasus region, bounded by the Black Sea to the west, by Russia to the north and northeast, by Turkey to the southwest ...

**?''

Astacus edwardsii ''Astacus'' (from the Greek , ', meaning "lobster" or "crayfish") is a genus of crayfish found in Europe and western Asia, comprising three extant (living) species and three extinct fossil species. Due to the crayfish plague, crayfish of thi ...

'' Van Straelen, 1928 -

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

- proposed to new genus '' Emplastron'' in 2021 study **''

Astacus laevissimus ''Astacus'' (from the Greek , ', meaning "lobster" or "crayfish") is a genus of crayfish found in Europe and western Asia, comprising three extant (living) species and three extinct fossil species. Due to the crayfish plague, crayfish of thi ...

'' Fritsch & Kafka, 1887 -

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

**''

Astacus multicavatus ''Astacus'' (from the Greek , ', meaning "lobster" or "crayfish") is a genus of crayfish found in Europe and western Asia, comprising three extant (living) species and three extinct fossil species. Due to the crayfish plague, crayfish of thi ...

'' Bell, 1863 -

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

*''

'' Skorikov, 1907 **'' Austropotamobius fulcisianus'' (Ninni, 1886) - southern Europe (

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

) **'' Austropotamobius llopisi'' (Via, 1971) -

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

**''

Austropotamobius pallipes ''Austropotamobius pallipes'' is an endangered European freshwater crayfish, and the only crayfish native to the British Isles. Its common names include white-clawed crayfish and Atlantic stream crayfish. Distribution It is found from the eas ...

'' (Lereboullet, 1858) - France - "white-clawed crayfish" **''

Austropotamobius torrentium ''Austropotamobius torrentium'', also called the stone crayfish, is a European species of fresh water, freshwater crayfish in the family Astacidae. It is mostly found in tributaries of the Danube, having originated in the northern part of the Bal ...

'' (von Paula Schrank, 1803) - Germany, Croatia, Macedonia - "stone crayfish" *'' Emplastron'' O'Flynn, Audo & Kawai, 2021 **'' Emplastron edwardsi'' (Van Straelen, 1928) -

Sézanne Sézanne () is a commune in the Marne department and Grand Est region in north-eastern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions an ...

, France -

Paleocene The Paleocene, ( ) or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 mya (unit), million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), E ...

(

Thanetian The Thanetian is, in the ICS Geologic timescale, the latest age or uppermost stratigraphic stage of the Paleocene Epoch or Series. It spans the time between . The Thanetian is preceded by the Selandian Age and followed by the Ypresian Age ( ...

) *''

'' Bott, 1950 **'' Pacifastacus chenoderma'' (Cope, 1871) -

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

, USA **'' Pacifastacus connectens'' (Faxon, 1914) - Idaho, USA **'' Pacifastacus fortis'' (Faxon, 1914) -

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, USA - "Shasta crayfish" **'' Pacifastacus gambelii'' (Girard, 1852) - California, USA **'' Pacifastacus leniusculus'' (Dana, 1852) -

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...

, west coast of North America - "signal crayfish" **'' Pacifastacus nigrescens'' (Stimpson, 1857) - around

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, California, USA - "sooty crayfish" (recently extinct) *''

'' Bott, 1950 **''

Pontastacus cubanicus ''Pontastacus'' is a genus of freshwater crayfish occurring in eastern Europe and western Asia. Classification and phylogeny ''Pontastacus'' belongs to the family Astacidae, one of the three families of Northern Hemisphere freshwater crayfish wi ...

'' (Birstein & Vinogradov, 1934) -

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

**''

Pontastacus danubialis ''Pontastacus'' is a genus of freshwater crayfish occurring in eastern Europe and western Asia. Classification and phylogeny ''Pontastacus'' belongs to the family Astacidae, one of the three families of Northern Hemisphere freshwater crayfish wi ...

'' Brodsky, 1981 - Danube Delta lakes,

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

**''

Pontastacus daucinus ''Pontastacus'' is a genus of freshwater crayfish occurring in eastern Europe and western Asia. Classification and phylogeny ''Pontastacus'' belongs to the family Astacidae, one of the three families of Northern Hemisphere freshwater crayfish wi ...

'' Brodsky, 1981 - Danube Delta lakes,

and

Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...

**''

Pontastacus eichwaldi ''Pontastacus'' is a genus of freshwater crayfish occurring in eastern Europe and western Asia. Classification and phylogeny ''Pontastacus'' belongs to the family Astacidae, one of the three families of Northern Hemisphere freshwater crayfish wi ...

'' (Bott, 1950) -

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...

**''

Pontastacus kessleri ''Pontastacus'' is a genus of freshwater crayfish occurring in eastern Europe and western Asia. Classification and phylogeny ''Pontastacus'' belongs to the family Astacidae, one of the three families of Northern Hemisphere freshwater crayfish wi ...

'' (Schimkewitsch, 1886) -

Turkestan Turkestan, also spelled Turkistan ( fa, ترکستان, Torkestân, lit=Land of the Turks), is a historical region in Central Asia corresponding to the regions of Transoxiana and Xinjiang. Overview Known as Turan to the Persians, western Turke ...

**''

Pontastacus leptodactylus ''Pontastacus leptodactylus'', the Danube crayfish, Galician crayfish, Turkish crayfish or narrow-clawed crayfish is a species of brackish water crayfish imported and introduced to Central Europe in 19th century from the Caspian Sea region. D ...

'' (Eschscholtz, 1823) - around the

, in

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...

, and

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

- "Turkish crayfish" **'' Pontastacus pachypus'' (Rathke, 1837) -

Sea of Azov The Sea of Azov ( Crimean Tatar: ''Azaq deñizi''; russian: Азовское море, Azovskoye more; uk, Азовське море, Azovs'ke more) is a sea in Eastern Europe connected to the Black Sea by the narrow (about ) Strait of Kerch, ...

- "Caspian crayfish" **''

Pontastacus pylzowi ''Pontastacus'' is a genus of freshwater crayfish occurring in eastern Europe and western Asia. Classification and phylogeny ''Pontastacus'' belongs to the family Astacidae, one of the three families of Northern Hemisphere freshwater crayfish wi ...

'' (Skorikov, 1907) - eastern part of

Transcaucasia The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Arme ...

**'' Pontastacus salinus'' (von Nordmann, 1842) -

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q943248 Crayfish Decapod families Taxa named by Pierre André Latreille