Crawfish bigger as height of season approaches

The annual World Championship Crawfish Etouffee Cook-off is Sunday, and big crawfish are available for those cooking in Sunday’s event.
“In the last week or so, the size has gotten a lot better,” said Dexter Guillory, manager at Riceland Crawfish. “I expect size to be good for the rest of the season.” 
“The price has also dropped to where it normally is this time of year, but I think there will be a slight increase in price because of the high demand of Easter week.”
Jeff DeRouen with Crawfish Enterprises and Prairie Cajun Seafood Wholesale Distributors also has seen an increase in crawfish size.
“In the last couple of days, size has really picked up,” DeRouen said. “You can tell they are living better. Sunshine is the recipe (for bigger crawfish).” 
“February through early March is the major growth season for crawfish. We had a perfect growing season for crawfish — plenty of rain and water. We had cool weather but not cold.”
DeRouen predicts there will be a good supply of crawfish for Good Friday, but he doesn’t expect that price to come down too much until after the Easter holiday is over.
Workers at College Junction Mudbugs, Rocky’s Cajun Kitchen and Ruby’s Courtyard and Cafe also report a steady increase in crawfish size. As of Tuesday, crawfish were $4.29 a pound at College Junction Mudbugs and $3.99 per pound for those purchasing 15 or more pounds. At Rocky’s Cajun Cafe, crawfish were $13.50 for three pounds and $22.50 for five pounds. Crawfish at Ruby’s Courtyard and Cafe are $17 for three pounds. 
Even with the height of crawfish season — Good Friday — only a week away, the St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office has not received any calls about crawfish thefts.  
“I can tell you that during the Lenten season, crawfish theft is highest across all boundaries, parish to parish,” said Lt. Clay Higgins with the St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office. “This is because of the simple fact that the price for crawfish is highest during Lent while at the same time crawfish season is in full swing so crawfish ponds are set for harvest.” 
In 2014, the sheriff’s had one report of stolen crawfish in February, and 30 pounds of mudbugs were stolen along with 30 traps. In 2013, four reports of stolen crawfish were made. The first two reports were in March, and in each of the two separate incidents, 200 pounds of crawfish were stolen. In April, two separate thefts of 30 sacks and 25 sacks were reported. In 2012, there were two reports, with 20 and 23 pounds being stolen, and in 2011, there was one report, of 17 sacks of crawfish being stolen. Of the reported crawfish thefts since 2011, the sheriff’s office has arrested a few individuals during the course of investigating eight of the reports. 
According to Higgins, there is no specific area of the parish with a high number of crawfish theft reports.
“The ponds are pretty much spread across the parish, as they are in other parishes,” Higgins said. “There is no single area where heavy concentrations of crawfish ponds are located, there is no sort of urban area for the ponds that would equate to higher percentages of theft, in the way that houses cramped together in a city result in higher concentrations of crime in urban areas.”
During the crawfish season, patrol deputies are directed to spend more time patrolling crawfish ponds, and such patrols are usually in a vehicle with large spotlights or done by an officer sitting in “black out” watching the ponds with binoculars. Given the circumstances and geography of such a detail, catching and arresting thieves is much harder than peeling a crawfish.