Crabbing
Marine Fisheries
Mississippi Derelict Crab Trap Removal Program
 Blue crabs (Callinectes sapidus) have been harvested in
Mississippi for hundreds of years. All along the coast, both commercial and
recreational fishermen seek out this seafood delicacy. Its generic name, Callinectes
is a combination of two Latin words meaning "beautiful swimmer," while its
specific name, sapidus, means "savory."
Blue crabs spend a portion of their lives in brackish-water areas
of the Mississippi Sound. These waters, known as estuaries, are transitional zones
between the salty Gulf and freshwater inland rivers. Blue crabs feed on both plants
and animals. They feast on marine worms, snails, fish, seaweed and marsh grasses.
To determine the sex of a crab look at its abdomen. All males have
a slender "T"-shaped abdomen. An immature female crab has a
triangle-shaped abdomen, which turns into a semi-circle after molting occurs.
Because they have a hard, rigid exoskeleton, crabs must periodically molt (shed their
shells) in order to grow larger. Such crabs are called "soft shells" and
are considered a delicacy.
Crab licenses are available
at the Department of Marine Resources.
The simplest and cheapest method of crabbing is using string with fish,
chicken or other meat as bait. When the crab takes the bait, the string is slowly
and carefully pulled up and the crabs scooped into a waiting net or basket.
The most common method of catching the tasty blue crab is using a crab
or drop net. The bait is tied securely to the bottom of a net. The net is
attached to string and lowered into the water until it hits bottom. There it lies
flat so the unsuspecting crab will go after the bait. The nets are left and checked
periodically until you have captured enough crabs.
For the more advanced crabber, crab traps or "pots" are
used. Bait is placed in the bait-well found inside the trap. After baiting,
the trap is attached to a strong line and lowered into the water to rest on the
bottom. A float is attached to the other end of the line, marking the trap's
location if they are not tied to a pier. All crab pots should be visibly marked with
the owner's name, as well as the registration number of the boat used. It is illegal
to place any crab trap where the line or float interferes with normal boat traffic.
Should you catch a sponge (egg-bearing) crab, the law requires you to
return it to the water immediately. All crabs, with the exception of soft shells,
must be five inches or larger as measured from the tip of one lateral spine across the
back of the shell to the tip of the opposite lateral spine.
Once caught, crabs must be kept alive until cooked. A wet towel or
a burlap sack placed over the basket will shade the crabs and keep them alive.
Pouring water over them periodically will also help, but they should not be left in
standing water.
Prepare crabs by filling a large pot with enough water to cover the
crabs. While the water is heating, rinse crabs with clean water to remove any mud or
sediment. Dump live crabs in boiling water, return water to a boil and cook for 1 0
to 20 minutes. When cooked, remove the crabs from the water, let cool, then clean
and eat.
Additions to the pot can include onion, garlic, celery, rock salt,
lemon, potatoes and corn. To spice things up, throw in some crab boil and a splash
of hot sauce. ~
Blue Crab Life Cycle ~ The blue
crab, Callinectes sapidus, is the most important commercial crab
species in the Gulf of Mexico. Blue crabs are members of the family
Portunidae. Crabs in this family are characterized by the paddle or
oar-shaped fifth legs that enable burrowing and swimming.
Blue crabs
mate from March through November. The female blue crab mates in the
soft-shell state, at the time of her terminal or pubertal molt. At this
molt, her abdomen or apron changes from a
triangular shape to a rounded shape. Blue crabs practice mate guarding, and
a male blue crab will stay with a female until her shell has hardened and
she can defend herself. Though she mates only once, she stores a portion of
the sperm and is capable of producing fertile eggs for one or more
additional "sponges" during her life. Males will mate throughout their life
span. Unlike shrimp, female blue crabs carry their eggs beneath them until
they hatch. The eggs, called a "sponge" or "berry," are yellow-orange when
laid but begin to darken as the larvae in the eggs begin to develop. The
number of eggs in a single sponge ranges from 700,000 to one million. Blue
crab eggs hatch in about two weeks. Prior to hatching, the eggs are black
due to the pigment in the eyes of the developing larvae. Newly hatched
crabs are called zoeae, and like shrimp, they spend their larval life in the
offshore plankton. Zoeae will shed or molt several times before developing
into a second larval stage known as a megalops. Crab zoeae
require a fairly high salinity for survival, a minimum of 25 parts per
thousand (). Females with eggs are found around the barrier islands in
large numbers during the summer. Crabs have a long spawning period in
Mississippi and "sponge" or "egg" crabs may be found in all but the coldest
months. Once the megalopal stage is reached, the organism is more tolerant
of low salinities, and these tiny larvae may be found throughout the Sound.
Blue crabs enter Mississippi Sound as megalopae and move into the shallow,
marsh areas where they molt into the "first crab" stage. At this time
the young crab resembles its parents though it is only 3 to 4 millimeters
wide across its spines. Marsh areas offer both food and protection to
the young crab, which must shed many times before reaching adulthood.
It has been estimated that a crab (including larval molts) will shed
approximately 25 times during its life. Crabs are especially
vulnerable to predation while they are soft and must hide until their new
shell has hardened and they are able to defend themselves.
Young crabs of
both sexes roam throughout the estuary. Upon maturation, there is a
definite preference of males for low salinity water and females for high
salinity areas of the Sound. Adult crabs are omnivorous, feeding upon a
variety of plant and animal material. In addition to the commercial fishery
for blue crabs, Mississippi has a well developed recreational fishery.
Coastal Zone residents as well as visitors to the state can be seen crabbing
from piers and bridges during the summer.
Excerpted from Chapter 11, Book 2, Marine Resources and History of the Gulf Coast
By Harriet M. Perry |
