just curious?

[kevinwonka]

how is the crabbing going to get any better if they let commercials keep females?are they worth the little bit of money they get for them? not trying to start any thing but seems useless to ban recs and let comms. still keep them.will the crabbing ever get better with these regulations? any opinions would be great.thx

[rock n crab]

do you know this for a fact..... stopping the 50 bushel a day dredging in Va alone has to have a positive impact... right now I'm allowed to keep 10 bushel up til next Saturday and have not kept a bushel yet..... same goes for the other commercial guys I know..... for those commercial guys that do target the female crab; these limits that have been set are far fewer than what they've been used to so it's all lessening the number of females being harvested....

[phillyfire]

Agreed the next step will almost surley be that they(comms) most throw back all females.
Another question to answer is are there enough males to fertilize all the girls.

In the near future dont be suprised if we have a reduced limit (down to 1 bushel a boat)

In my opinion future restrictions on our limits can be averted if we can get back some s.a.v. with that alone I believe the population will rebound.

How do we get more s.a.v ? Let the menhaden clean the excess algea from the bay.

the future health of the bay is hinged(atleast near future) on stopping the menhaden reduction fishery. Do that and algea will decrease and we will have more submerged underwater vegetation for the crabs to molt in safley.(safely for a crab is a relative thing):D

[port fisher]

do you know this for a fact..... stopping the 50 bushel a day dredging in Va alone has to have a positive impact... right now I'm allowed to keep 10 bushel up til next Saturday and have not kept a bushel yet..... same goes for the other commercial guys I know..... for those commercial guys that do target the female crab; these limits that have been set are far fewer than what they've been used to so it's all lessening the number of females being harvested....

Rock n Crab,
I agree with you 100%. I am a Rec Crabber but the number of females kept by Maryland Commercial Crabbers is minimal to the harvest that takes place the entire season in VA. I would have to do some research but I wonder, with the nurseries in VA and the dredging that takes place there as well, What is the percentage of females that actually make it out of the nursery and into the Maryland waters of the bay? I also wonder how the percentage of females taken by Maryland Comm. Crabbers compares to the percentage taken all season from the harvest in VA. As I stated, It's probably minimal! I have no problem with the reg's put in place for Maryland Rec Crabbers. It's gotta help! It would be nice to see more partnership in the state legislation for Maryland and Virginia regarding the future of the bay! I am not convinced the right hand knows what the left hand is doing! JMO

[phillyfire]

Chesapeake Bay Ecological Foundation, Inc. (http://www.chesbay.org/articles/4.asp)

[stingray]

That's probably the next step if the population doesn't rebound quickly. Comms can't keep females for the next 2 weeks, the migration period, but I wish there had been a ban on females altogether. Comms catch most the females that the recs toss back, so what's the point?

Actually Jim, the restriction doesn't take place until the 26th and runs through OCT 4.

[Nummer1]

Don't put too much faith in the female thing. DNR doesnt know if it will help. All they have to do is declare that it unsafe to eat shellfish from certain areas, maybe they already have. Then expand it to the whole bay and tribs. Then there will be plenty and more watermen will be out, another DNR goal. the WDS should be examined closer as it is seriously flawed then fudged to account for over/under reporting and unknown harvests by recs and prop owners.

[stingray]

No problem Jim. :thumbup:

Because it affects me, I've had to double check the dates at least 5x's. :D

[johnrogers]

Most commercial guys I know don't even bother with the females, not much money in them from what I am told

[crabby and son]

Most female crabs go to packing houses..........Gary

[port fisher]

To add to Crabby and son,
Most crab bought in stores are female crabs. How many grocery stores do you know around your area that have "fresh crab meat" for sale? LOT'S. How many seafood dealers are around? LOT's. Yes the quality of the bay needs to improve but that's a whole different topic. That is not what got us to the point we are at with the crab population. If it was, the Rockfish would have went extinct 10 years ago when the ban was placed on them. Think about it!

[stingray]

I personaly know some guys that haven't had the disposable income this yr to buy crabs for their families. I use this time of the yr to help them out. Whatever they can offer for a basket of FM's is fine by me. Even $20 a basket helps w/gas for me and gives them some joy.

[phillyfire]

good man !:clap:

[redbeard]

phillyfire please stop the propaganda. if you want to clean the bay you got to stop worrying about what to take out and start worrying about what gets in. oysters and other fish that are filter feeders can not clean the bay at this point.