Wildlife authorities cracking down on illegal live crawfish sales in Colorado; long-term solution sought

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- The owner of a Louisiana seafood company who has sold product here for nearly a decade, said that he's being treated unfairly because he's no longer allowed to sell certain kinds of live crawfish while other sellers continue to do so.

At issue are two particular species of the crustacean -- Louisiana red swamp and white river crawfish -- that are not among the species authorized for transport, sale or possession by Colorado Parks & Wildlife, because of concerns that they would spread disease or become invasive if released into local waterways.

Anthony Verdin, Sr., owner of A&A Seafood Sales, said that he's always had the necessary licenses and permits to sell those crawfish and species, but stopped selling them after his first bi-monthly trip to Colorado Springs in March upon hearing that the two species are illegal in Colorado.

"All I want is a level playing field," he told KRDO in an interview Saturday. "Either say that everyone can sell them, or no one can sell them. Then I'll adjust accordingly and move on."

Verdin said that he comes to Colorado Springs several times during the crawfish season that spans from early March to early June, and has hundreds of customers who have been loyal to him.

"They want live crawfish," he said. "It's our top seller. They can buy it from us cheaper than they can get it in stores where it's not live. We sell shrimp, oysters and other seafood but crawfish is king."

Daniel Roa considers himself a regular customer.

My wife and I both grew up next to the ocean, so we love fresh seafood," he said. "We’d have to drive all the way to Denver to get fresh seafood — if it is fresh."

Also known as crawdads, crayfish or mudbugs, the mini-lobsters are commonly boiled live in a "boil" mix that includes shrimp, sausage, potatoes and corn; the combination is as much of social event and cultural tradition as a meal.

On Monday morning, Colorado Parks & Wildlife's Fish Health Board met in Denver to discuss the situation; board members asked CPW how it became aware of illegal crawfish transport and sales.

"We received a tip through Louisiana about some illegal activity that was happening," said Ty Petersburg, acting assistant chief of law enforcement for the agency. "Not just in Colorado but is crossing the country. So, our folks got involved in that and there were some really clear violations involved. There was one ticket written for that, and then we realized that boy, there's a lot of this going on."

Verdin complained that he and other individual sellers are being singled out by CPW, but Petersburg insisted that's not the case because the regulations also include restaurants that also sell the crawfish in question.

That doesn't please Robert Brunet, owner of Momma Pearl's Cajun Kitchen, in Colorado Springs; he was one of a dozen people who expressed opposition to the board.

"Crawfish account for 30% of our annual income," he said. "It's our bread and butter. Restricting them would be detrimental."

Wildlife authorities and opponents disagree on whether the prohibited crawfish pose a threat to native species, and whether the crustaceans are used for anything else except food.

"What they’re worried about is someone buying it for bait," Verdin explained. "Taking it out to the lake to go fishing. And at the end of their fishing trio, they’ve got a few crawfish left in their bucket, so they throw them in the water. Well, these crawfish are not going to get thrown in any kind of water except boiling, seasoned water."

Critics also say that even if the prohibited crawfish somehow got into Colorado waters, they would be unable to survive the state's cold winters; authorities said that there have been a few lab tests on that subject but no field research.

The board ultimately decided that it will work with other state agencies to determine whether the regulations should be changed, but that a decision likely won't be made until fall, at the earliest -- too late for sellers to salvage profits for this season.

After this story aired Monday, a man who said that he lives in Trinidad refuted CPW's contention that only one person was cited for violating crawfish regulations.

"They cited my two suppliers a month ago and then they cited me, two weeks later," he recalled. "When my sellers came, there were agents all over the place. They cited me for same violations even though I live in Colorado and didn't transport the crawfish. They even counted the dead ones. I'm facing a $1,000 fine. The city attorney is mad about this. I have a meeting with him tomorrow. He's going to try to get that citation (dismissed)."

The man said that he's not surprised that a tip from Louisiana spurred CPW into action.

"Crawfish are a cutthroat industry there," he said. "One supplier will turn in another supplier to eliminate the competition and get more customers for themselves."