Strategic Management Prospects v4.0 Species Forecast Report created on 01 February, 2024
A Species Forecast Report is a summary of currently available information, the predicted 50-year outlook for the species, and potential pathways to recovery through species-specific and landscape-scale actions.
The report collates data from a range of sources including the Victorian Biodiversity Atlas, Strategic Management Prospects (SMP), Specific Needs Assessments, Threatened Species Action Statements, the Genetic Risk Index, and the IUCN Common Assessment Method.
Species Forecast Reports are intended to be used in conjunction with SMP and other spatial outputs in NatureKit, and Action Statements where relevant.
For more information on Species Forecast Reports, SMP and other biodiversity decision support tools, including user guides, visit Choosing actions for nature webpage on the DEECA website.
| Taxon ID | 1646 |
| Scientific name | Euastacus bispinosus |
| Common name | Glenelg Spiny Crayfish |
| Group | Mussels, decapod crustacea |
| FFG status | Endangered |
| EPBC status | Endangered |
The Glenelg Spiny Crayfish is a large, long-lived freshwater crayfish. Like other Euastacus spp., the crays are robust and their claws and carapace (main body) are covered in spines and bumps. Glenelg Spiny Crayfish are commonly olive green in colour, sometimes brown, with splashes of red colouration on the joints of their claws and legs. Their undersides are a pale creamy-beige colour. Individuals are large and grow to at least 130 mm OCL (occipital carapace length: length between eyes and end of main body segment) and 1.1 kg in weight. This is a slow-growing taxon taking up to 12 years to reach sexual maturity (Van Praagh 2003). It reproduces annually, has a low dispersal rate, and is typically found at low densities (Honan and Mitchell 1995). Glenelg spiny freshwater crayfish are both detritivores and predators. They forage on the stream bed and feed on a wide variety of organic matter including general organic detritus, decomposing terrestrial vegetation, aquatic macrophytes, algae and decomposing animal material (Honan, 2004). They will also strike at and eat living organisms including fish and other invertebrates. In smaller streams the taxon is the apex predator. Adult Glenelg spiny freshwater crayfish are large and strong and can move significant amounts of river bed substrate in their feeding. This movement of the stream bed plays an important role in nutrient recycling and stream bed structure in the streams crayfish inhabit.
The Glenelg Spiny Freshwater Crayfish is endemic to Australia, occurring across the Glenelg River Basin and associated tributaries and several spring-fed coastal streams in south-east South Australia (Morgan 1986). The natural distribution of the Glenelg Spiny Freshwater Crayfish is restricted to the Glenelg River system in south-western Victoria and five spring-fed coastal streams in south-eastern South Australia including the Ewens Ponds system. The taxon has occasionally been recorded from several nearby river and creek systems, but these are likely the result of translocation by anglers in the past (TSSC 2011).
The taxon is usually found in small permanent or temporary streams, and along the margins of swampy areas, in forested catchments, though it can persist in cleared areas if a border of vegetation is left along the creeks (Morgan 1986). The vegetation at lower altitude sites includes Eucalyptus and Leptospermum species, bracken, with wet sclerophyll forest and pine plantations in areas (Morgan 1986). This species prefers streams with shaded, well vegetated banks, and an abundance of woody debris. Within the Glenelg River system, the taxon uses undercut banks, woody debris, rock boulders and cobbled river beds as refuges when not feeding, resting or moulting. Crayfish also create burrows in which they retreat when inactive for longer periods. Springs discharging freshwater are a feature of the Glenelg River system, and deeper pools with spring-water inflows are important refuges for crayfish in summer when water temperatures are high and flows are low (Honan, 2004).
This table contains information on the genetic health of Glenelg Spiny Crayfish, informed by recent work conducted by Monash University and cesar Pty Ltd (Kriesner et al. 2019; Kriesner and Weeks 2020). The project undertook genetic risk assessments of ~1,100 species of flora and fauna found in Victoria and generated a large database of available genetic and demographic data for these species. A framework was developed for combining these parameters into a Genetic Risk Index that classified species broadly into ‘Low’, ‘Moderate’, ‘High’, ‘Very High’ and ‘Uncertain’ risk categories. The Genetic Risk Index will continue to undergo refinement and validation to provide further insight into the genetic health of species in Victoria.
| Total Australian population size | Unknown |
| Australian distribution | Most of the population occurs in Victoria |
| Dispersal capacity | Low: ~1km |
| Reproductive mode | Sexual: species reproduces sexually via male and female gametes |
| Average generation time | One generation every 11 - 20 years |
| Victorian population trend since ~1975 | Population has significantly decreased |
| Inbreeding evidence | High |
| Genetic diversity | Low |
| Genetic rescue potential | High: at least some populations are at high risk of decline or extinction without genetic intervention |
| Genetic Risk Index | Very high |
The Habitat Distribution Model (HDM) layer shows the modelled distribution of habitat for Glenelg Spiny Crayfish in Victoria. Red shading indicates areas of habitat with relatively higher suitability, compared with yellow shaded areas. HDMs are developed by combining Victorian Biodiversity Atlas (VBA) occurrence records for the species with a range of environmental variables to predict where the most suitable habitat for the species is in Victoria. Species may not always occupy areas of suitable habitat. Threatening processes (prior or ongoing) and disturbance regimes (e.g. fire, timber harvesting) may stop species from occupying otherwise suitable habitat for periods of time. Management actions often focus on currently occupied areas, however management of unoccupied areas can also be important to allow populations to re-establish.
No Habitat Distrabution Model is currently available.
No Species Forecast data is available because Glenelg Spiny Crayfish is not yet included in our decision-support tools.
A Species Forecast is the estimated likelihood of a species being present in 50 years time. The data for Species Forecasts is drawn from DEECA’s decision support tools, Strategic Management Prospects and Specific Needs Assessments.
Many species benefit from the management of widespread threats, such as weeds and pests, and the benefit of these landscape-scale actions to ~4,200 species is modelled in Strategic Management Prospects. In addition to landscape-scale actions, some species also need actions that improve or protect habitat at certain sites, such as nest boxes or hollow logs, or actions to improve certain populations, such as gene mixing or translocation.
As part of a continuous improvement program for our decision-support tools, we are working to expand the scope of actions modelled in Strategic Management Prospects, and to build the dataset of species benefits from location-specific and population-specific actions.
We can use this data to consider how different actions may benefit a species and examine how different types of on-ground management may contribute to a species’ recovery in 50 years, to develop a Species Forecast.
No Species Forecast data is available because Glenelg Spiny Crayfish is not yet included in our decision-support tools.
The benefit data in SMP can be used to consider what the Glenelg Spiny Crayfish’s prospects are if the landscape scale management actions in SMP are implemented.
No Species Prospects figure is available becuase Glenelg Spiny Crayfish is not yet included in SMP.
For more information on the decision support tools, products and underlying data used in this report, and how the data is collected and developed into products, please visit the following links:
These links include information on how to provide data and feedback into these products.
The Species Forecast Reports will be updated periodically to reflect changes and improvements in the products and tools that inform them (e.g., following updates to SMP).
As the data contained in Species Forecast Reports is drawn from multi-species datasets, it is not currently possible to incorporate species-specific information or feedback directly.
For help or further information get in touch by visiting Choosing actions for nature webpage on the DEECA website.
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