Lobster in Chicago River? No, it was a creature much worse

If you’ve ever kayaked down the Chicago River, fished or relaxed along any of the waterways in the area, you may have encountered all sorts of creatures — an enormous snapping turtle, a stray alligator or maybe something that looks a lot like a lobster.
One listener of National Public Radio station WBEZ testified she saw something lobster-like swimming around the city. So if it wasn’t a lobster, what did the listener see? It turns out the creature the listener saw was a red swamp crayfish, and its presence in Chicago waterways is a warning sign. According to one ecologist, that particular crayfish species currently inhabiting the Chicago River is second only to Asian carp in terms of its invasiveness and potential to wreak havoc on local ecosystems.