May 2, 2014 — The Chesapeake Bay’s blue crab population dropped for the second year in a row, and the number of adult females fell below the level scientists consider safe, a new survey shows.
The estimated population of the tasty crustaceans reached an encouraging 765 million in 2012 before plunging to 300 million last year.
Results of the latest survey by Virginia and Maryland scientists, released Thursday, shows the number has dropped even more, to 297 million.
The number of adult females — keys to building the next generation — dropped from 147 million to 69 million, meaning they are in a “depleted state,” state officials said. Scientists consider the minimum safe level for the spawning-age females to be 70 million.
Read the full story from the Richmond Times-Dispatch