Medium-term feasibility of the management of the invasive crayfish Procambarus clarkii with the sterile males release technique.

Background: The sterile male release technique (SMRT) is a useful method applied for controlling invasive and pest species. However, the use of X-rays can lead to negative effects on the survival and health conditions of sterilized males.

Results: This study was set up to evaluate the functional integrity of physiological, morphological and behavioural responses in males of the red swamp crayfish, Procambarus clarkii (Girard, 1852), exposed to a dose of 40 Gy of ionizing radiation.

Long-lasting generalization triggered by a single trial event in the invasive crayfish .

Behavioural flexibility allows adaptation to environmental changes, a situation that invasive species have often to face when colonizing new territories. Such flexibility arises from a set of cognitive mechanisms among which generalization plays a key role, as it allows the transfer of past solutions to solve similar new problems. By means of a habituation paradigm, we studied generalization in the invasive crayfish Once crayfish had habituated their defensive response to a specific water jet, we tested whether habituation transferred to a new type of water jet.