Aphanomyces astaci, the crayfish plague pathogen, may be a common cause of crayfish mass mortalities in the Czech Republic

On three occasions, crayfish plague (Aphanomyces astaci) has been identified as the cause of mass mortalities of native crayfish in the Czech Republic in 2005 and 2006. The true number of plague outbreaks is likely to be higher since crayfish mortalities often go unnoticed and only the result, the disappearance of a native crayfish population, is noted. Crayfish plague may have a significant negative impact on the successful restoration of indigenous crayfish populations in Central Europe.