Early Easter Puts Crawfish Farms Under Extra Pressure

"Crawfish live off rice when it's in the ground," Stephanie Padgett, an owner of Doguet's Crawfish Farm in China, said.

"(Crawfish) help rice farmers because they eat the stubble after the rice is harvested, so it's easier to plough the fields."

The peak of the crawfish season usually falls in April and in May, but an early Easter has local crawfish farms busy providing Southeast Texans with meals for the last few Fridays of Lent.

Lisa Doguet, an owner of Doguet's Crawfish Farm in China, said her farm is yielding more crawfish per day on average than last year at the same time.

But John Gaulding, owner of Southeast Texas Crawfish Farm in Hamshire, said weather and other circumstances have prevented him from producing as much product as he was producing at this time last year.