Female to Male Ratio 3:1

[Black Irish]

Interesting read:

http://cbf.typepad.com/bay_daily/201...evelopmen.html

[redbeard]

More studies more $$$. that's what the CBF is all about $$$. Ann Fegly makes a good point about crab managment and females not being harvested at all. So what to do, we need to leave things alone for awhile to see were this goes. If the ratiodifferance continues to grow than we can adjust some more female harvest to even thing s out. One thing i don't see mentioned is the long term ratio from the winter dredge survey, i am sure they have these #s.

[Johnfishes]

Don't have an answer but do have several concerns. I have been wondering what this coming season will bring as far as mature male crabs. I crab mainly in Southern MD and as the season progressed into the fall, as expected the number of females increased. However what concerned me was as we got into mid to late October and later the males became almost non existant. Once the females went south there were very few male crabs of any size left. Generally the big males are the last to head to deeper water once November gets going. This year they were gone before the females. In over forty years of crabbing I don't ever recall the males going from abundant to almost non existant in such a short period. Hopefully just an anomally. The data they are referring to is now almost a year old, my guess is that the imbalance has only gotten wider. Once the winter dredge numbers are released we will have a better idea. This is also the first time that I have heard that they actually had a model to use as a template for the restrictions. I would be curious to see where and what type of crab they are refering to.

[redbeard]

John, i wouldn't be too concerned about the males disapearring late in the season. in 2010 the adult crabs down that way didn't get to deep water early enough and there was a good number of them killed from the onset of cold water from a clod snap that dropped the water temps too quickly. i also heard that the males were there later than usual but in very deep water and well into nov. which made them hard to catch for most recs. who are not set up to crab that way.

[Jerkbait-PA]

I’m no crab expert but in my opinion any male crab that can’t handle his three she-crab quota in a year needs to be removed from the gene pool.

[Crabbermanjl]

“We need more males in the system to accommodate the females, and right now it appears we are out of balance,” Hines said. “And it also appears that the females in the lower Chesapeake Bay…may not be receiving enough sperm to fertilize the maximum number of eggs.” KEY WORD APPEARS TO BE. I CAUGHT NO WHERE NEAR THE NUMBER OF FEMALES THIS PAST-YEAR AND THE YEAR BEFORE & BEFORE THAT! Interesting Only time will tell...

[triplef]

Crabbermanjl, I agree with you. My female catch has been way low over the past two seasons. I almost caught no females at all this fall. The only females I saw were doubled up.

Rob

[Crabbermanjl]

Strange they say all that! And I have 9 years of Data that I personally have collected the past years etc. leaves one to wonder...