Tag Archives: Jonah crabs

Jonah Crab Moves Mainstream In Gulf Of Maine After Decades As Lobster Bycatch

Regulators are taking comments on plans to expand a lucrative new crab fishery that’s stirring interest in the Gulf of Maine. Jonah crabs are a native species that, until recently, was mainly caught as bycatch – by accident – in lobster pots.,,, New Hampshire Fish and Game biologist Josh Carloni says in Northern New England and the Gulf of Maine, lobster is still king – but that could change. >click to read<11:42

If you find a crab with a green t-bar tag and/or orange knuckle tag marked with “AOLA” You could win money!

jonah tagsMassachusetts’s Division of Marine Fisheries, in collaboration with the Atlantic Offshore Lobstermen’s Association, is tagging Jonah crabs to investigate migration patterns and growth. Information will be used for Jonah crab stock assessment.  WHAT TO REPORT: date, location, tag #, crab sex, egg status and whether you kept or released the animal. For green tags only, if you have a way to measure   carapace width in millimeters, we would appreciate that information as well. REWARDS: Every tag report will qualify as one raffle entry.  Rewards will be drawn July 1, 2017 and July 1, 2018: 1st place – $500, 2nd place – $300, 3rd place $200. Green tag reports with width measurement will be additionally entered into high  value cash raffles drawn July 1, 2017 and 2018: 1st place – $1,000, 2nd place $500 If you haul a tagged crab, please release it and contact (774) 251-9454 or [email protected] Click here 08:37

Jonah crabs booming in value as managers seek fishery plan

New England lobstermen are catching and selling more of a long-overlooked crab species in their traps, leading regulators to try to craft a management plan for the fishery before it becomes overexploited. The is working on regulations for Jonah crabs, a species common along the Eastern Seaboard that is rapidly growing in market share as an economic alternative to more expensive Dungeness and stone crabs. Read the rest here 10:26

Urchin depletion leads to crab abundance, study says

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A boom that saw Maine fishermen harvest millions of pounds of sea urchins for the lucrative Japanese market depleted the spiny sea creatures, turning the ecosystem upside-down and creating an ideal habitat for an urchin predator that has flourished, according to a new scientific study. continue reading