April 19, 2013 — With a new survey finding the Chesapeake Bay's crab population at its lowest level in five years and reproducing poorly, Maryland officials announced Friday they would move to tighten catch limits on the region's iconic crustacean.
The annual winter survey of Maryland and Virginia waters tallied 300 million crabs, down nearly two-thirds from the number seen the year before, the Department of Natural Resources reported.
Though the number of female crabs increased and remains well above the threshold scientists say is needed to sustain the population, the survey found the crop of juvenile crabs has fallen by 80 percent since last year. Officials said overharvesting didn't appear to be the problem, but possibly an influx of fish into the bay that feasted on the young crabs.
"The bay's blue crab population varies naturally," Tom O'Connell, DNR's fisheries director, said in a statement released with the survey results. "Weather conditions, an increase in predators or other natural occurrences can affect the crab stock."
Officials say Maryland and Virginia watermen caught fewer crabs last year — 56 million pounds, according to preliminary estimates, compared with 67 million pounds in 2011.
"The results of this year's winter dredge survey are by no means ideal," said John R. Griffin, Maryland's natural resources secretary. But he said crabbing regulations have been set in a way that allows for natural fluctuation of the population, as long as its stays within safe bounds.
Read the full story at the Baltimore Sun