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Chasing crayfish and the leeches that live on them

Maria Shrestha works to understand the evolutionary history of crayfish symbionts — and how they might be indicators of trouble.
By
  1. Stav Dimitropoulos

    1. Stav Dimitropoulos is a freelance writer in Athens, Greece.

Maria Shrestha with head torch and waterproof suit, holds a crayfish in a wetland a the blue hour.

Maria Shrestha is a zoologist at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia. Credit: Manca Juvan for Nature

“I study leeches called branchiobdellidans that live on crayfish. These leeches are just millimetres long and are symbionts — meaning they live in a close, long-term association with their host. They feed on microorganisms and debris that collect on the host’s surface. In small numbers, they help to keep the crayfish clean, but in large colonies, they can become mildly parasitic.

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Nature 647, 1078 (2025)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-025-03861-4

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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