Why they have the word ‘fish’ in their name is a story for another day but redclaw crayfish have the look of a really notorious creature that is not fish.
Two strong claws, more than half a dozen legs for movement, a body looking like an armour, a head shaped like a big screwdriver with inordinately big eyes on it and a mouth that’s more or less like a forest of jutting thorns and grown vines, crayfish have everything about them that makes them look ruthless.
So when four Zambians smuggled the live crustaceans into Malawi on May 16, 2025, the authorities – Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA), Malawi Police Service and the Department of Fisheries – made sure they arrested them and get them charged.
On the same day, the Department of Fisheries applied to the court in Lilongwe to have the crayfish destroyed. Permission granted, the contraband was incinerated at Kamuzu Central Hospital.
On May 23, the four appeared in court where they pleaded guilty to the charges.
On May 26, they got convicted and sentenced. They paid fines to escape jail terms and went back home.
It was the first-of-its kind case in Malawi, and probably the first case known to have moved so swiftly in a system so famous for its not being in a hurry on any case.
But the real question is: Why did Malawi have to bother about a mere 250kgs of some insect-like, ugly creatu
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First, the four did not have the requisite authorization from the Department of Fisheries for them to transport into Malawi live crayfish as is required by the law.
A case report produced by the department says in doing so, the Zambians contravened provisions of the Fisheries Conservation and Management Act (1997) that prevent the introduction of non-native species that pose ecological, economic and social threats.
Secondly, and worse, according to the report, across their several species, crayfish adapt easily to their new environment, are indiscriminate in what they eat and they are aggressive in their behaviour.
A native of Australia, once introduced into non-native ecosystems, redclaw crayfish can disrupt existing aquatic communities, tear apart food webs and change the ecological habitat in a number of ways.
Introduced in water bodies like Lake Malawi, the crayfish would prey on fish eggs and juveniles, directly reducing native fish populations.
They would compete with the prized chambo and other species in the lake for food and shelter. Due to their aggressive nature and high reproductive rates, they would emerge victors, the report indicates.
It furthers says crayfish would alter the new habitat by burrowing and feeding on aquatic vegetation and they are known to transmit diseases, potentially leading to disease outbreaks and further decimations of native fish populations.
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