CrabsA Red Kayak Project

By Griff LehnertWith tech assistance from Jordan Lehnert who is proud of the

background pictures!

The Animal

• Callinectes (“beautiful swimmer”) sapidus (“savory”)

• Gray-Blue in color. Claws are blue. Female claws are tipped with red.

• Males have a “T”shaped abdomen, known as the apron. Females have a triangle shaped apron.

• Grow by molting their old shell and growing a new one.

The Anatomy

Life Cycle

Diet

• Adult Crabs feed on crustaceans, fish, worms and nearly anything they can find.

• The blue crab’s favorite food is a thin shelled bivalve mollusk.

• Adult crabs will often resort to cannibalism of juvenile crabs.

Crabbing Economy

• For the past 60 years, blue crabs have been the main catch for Chesapeake Bay fisheries.

• Crabs are the most valuable catch for fisheries. The blue crab harvest for 2000 is estimated at $55 million.

• Approximately one-third of the nation’s blue crabs are caught in the Chesapeake.

Crabbing Regulations

• Harvesting Females is Prohibited

• Season: April 1- December 15

• Minimum Size

APRIL 1 - JULY 14

JULY 15 - DECEMBER 15

5 " Male Hard 5 1/4" Male Hard

3 1/4" Male

Soft

3 1/2" Male

Soft

Equipment: required by regulations

• Crab traps or pots

• Dipnets

• Trotting Lines

Catch Limits

• In an effort to bring back the blue crab, the Departments of Natural Resources of MD and VA limits the catch of commercial and noncommercial fishermen, depending on licensed crabbers on board.

• For more information, see the Maryland DNR website at http://www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/regulations

Environmental Issues

• Due to over-fishing, pollution and destruction of habitat, the blue crab population i the Chesapeake Bay is rapidly decreasing.

• The increase in population of predatory fish such as the striped bass and Atlantic croaker who prey on juvenile crabs

Effect of Bay Damage and Over-fishing Crabs

• Blue crab populations have fallen nearly 70% since 1990.

• In 1990, there were an estimated 791 million crabs in the Chesapeake. By 2000, the estimate was down to 281 million.

• By 2009, thanks to restrictions in harvesting, the blue crab population was 393 million.

Bibliography: Information• http://www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/

regulations• http://www.bluecrab.info/• http://www.chesapeakebay.net/blue_crab.htm• http://web.vims.edu/adv/ed/crab/?svr=www• http://www.aqua.org/animals_bluecrab.html

Bibliography:Pictures• http://www.fishingnj.org/procrab.htm• http://www.sms.si.edu/irlfieldguide/CrabBiol.htm• http://www.serc.si.edu/education/resources/bluecrab/lifecycle.aspx• http://beauforttribune.com/archives/8737• http://funbeach.com/activities/crabbing/• http://www.marshbunny.com/stjohns/trotline/trotline.html• http://www.crabbingtips.com/• http://www.paulmcgeheeart.com/pages/ChesapeakeBayCrabBoat.htm• http://www.fegi.ru/prim/sea/mol_dvu.htm• fishingnj.org• http://asm.news21.com/bundle/chesapeake/budget/31/• http://alansmoneyblog.com/2010/03/10/the-most-prosperous-nations-

on-earth/