Crabbing for Hard Shell Crabs

Crabbing - Hard Shell Crabs
http://www.bluecrab.info/crabbing/hardcrabs.html
Crabbing for Hard Shell Crabs
Crabs are harvested using a variety of methods. Recreational crabbers, or
"chicken neckers", may only use a piece of bait tied to a string while commercial
watermen use crabpots or trotlines.
Crabbing Bait
Bait
Most recreational crabbers use chicken necks for bait since they are considered
scrap, are very durable, and crabs love them! Commercial watermen, on the
other hand, prefer to use various types of oily bait fish, eel, and bull lip. Some
watermen use frozen fish because it tends to break down (decompose) faster than
fresh which seems to attract more crabs.
Eel - Cut into 4" pieces, eel is the ultimate crab bait and is used extensively
by commercial crabbers on their trotlines. Because eel is considered a
delicacy in Europe and Asia, its price has risen sharply thus making it
prohibitive to use as bait.
Bull Lip - A tough cut of meat from the facial area of beef. Bull lip is fast
becoming the bait of choice for trotlining since it is durable, inexpensive,
and crabs love it. Bull lip is easily obtained from any beef slaughterhouse.
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Crabbing - Hard Shell Crabs
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Be sure to have an axe handy to chop it up!
Menhaden (a.k.a. alewife, shad, bunker, shiner, pogey) - The bait of
choice for commercial crabbers utilizing crabpots. Menhaden is very
plentiful, is relatively inexpensive and is an excellent crab bait. It is said
that frozen menhaden catches more crabs than fresh, however frozen does
not last as long. Since most watermen tend their pots daily, which includes
re-baiting, the fast decomposition of the bait is not a problem. Make sure
you use fresh if you plan to let your pots sit for several days.
Chicken Necks - A good bait which is used mostly by recreational crabbers
("chicken neckers"). Usually used with crab traps and hand lines.
Turkey Necks - A good bait which is used by both recreational and
commercial crabbers. Turkey necks are durable and will generally last
several days when used on a trotline. Can also be used with traps and hand
lines.
Crabbing Equipment
Crabbing Gear
Most crabbers carry several important items
with them on the water. A dip net
(sometimes called a scap net) is essential
to scoop up stray crabs. A wooden bushel
basket is a good container for storing
caught crabs (all seafood stores buy and
sell crabs "by the bushel"). Also helpful are
thick crabbing gloves and a culling stick (I
made my own by cutting a 5-inch notch in a
piece of wood as seen in the photo. 5-inches, point-to-point, is the minimum legal
keeper size in most states.)
Crab Pot
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Crabbing - Hard Shell Crabs
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Crabpot
Invented by Benjamine F. Lewis in the 1920's, patented in 1928, and perfected
ten years later, the crabpot changed forever the way hard crabs are harvested on
the Chesapeake Bay. The crabpot is the most common method used to catch and
harvest crabs and is used worldwide. Click here to learn how to make your own.
The crabpot is a large square trap constructed out of galvanized chicken wire
(some new pots are constructed out of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) coated wire. Be
warned that these "plastic" pots become dirty very easily, becoming
contaminated with marine growth and barnacles. Also keep in mind that these
pots must utilize stainless steel frames and clamps which drives up the cost.). The
trap has two internal chambers. The bottom chamber, or "downstairs", consists of
two or four entrance funnels, known as "throats", which allow the crab to easily
enter but not exit. In the center of the bottom chamber is the "bait box" which is
constructed of fine-mesh galvanized wire so that the crab cannot get to the bait.
The top chamber is the holding area, known as the "parlor" or "upstairs". Crabs
enter the parlor through oblong, funnel-shaped, holes cut into the floor of the
parlor making it difficult for the crab to swim back downstairs.
Crabpots are ingenious contraptions in that
they utilize the crab's very own escape
instincts in order to trap them. Crabs smell
the bait and circle the pot, entering through
one of the throats. Once inside and unable
to reach the bait, the crab feels trapped and
threatened. When threatened, a crab
instinctively swims up towards the surface
to escape, where it winds up inside the
parlor. It remains in the parlor until
removed through a special opening along one of the top edges.
Most crabpots have two small exit holes up high in the parlor called "cull rings".
These rings are big enough to let small crabs escape yet small enough to trap the
larger keepers.
Most people attach bricks or metal bars to the bottom of their pots which act as
anchors. Commercial watermen will frame the bottom of their pots with steel
reinforcement rods (rebar) which, aside from acting as anchor, make them much
more durable. A long line is attached to the pot and a marker buoy (a cork or
Styrofoam float) is attached. These marker buoys are painted bright colors and
have unique markings to help distinguish them from other pots. The line must be
rugged and it should not float (unless you attach a weight to the line). Weights
are attached about 2-3 feet below the buoy which helps keep the line submerged
and less prone to being cut by a boat propeller. Another item found on most
commercial pots is a zinc anode. Since saltwater is very corrosive, sacrificial zinc
anodes are attached to a pot which effectively doubles its life span (commercial
pots without zinc anodes usually last only one or two seasons.)
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Jimmy Potting - During the last two weeks of May, watermen will bait their
pots with several live jimmies placed in the pot's parlor (or use a special
"peeler pot") which lures large mate-seeking peelers (she-crabs that did not
reach the terminal or mating molt the year before) into the pot. While this
method works using a regular pot, it will only catch a few peelers because
once a jimmy doubles-up with a female other females will not seek him. The
use of a peeler pot is preferable which does not exhibit this problem.
Bare Potting - Involves setting an un-baited pot down deep in the barren
channels. Crabs see the pot as a hiding place and will enter the pot. It's
usually only practiced for several weeks in the spring.
Peeler Pot - A specially designed crabpot used to catch mate-seeking
female peeler crabs. A peeler pot is similar to a standard crabpot except
that instead of a bait box, it incorporates a special holding cell where a live
male crab is placed. Mate-seeking female peeler crabs are attracted to the
lone male and will enter the pot and become trapped. Peeler pots can be
utilized all season long and work remarkably well.
Trotline
Trotline
A trotline is the tool of choice in the area near the Chester and Wye Rivers on
Maryland's Eastern Shore (actually, in those areas it's the only choice that's
allowed by law!). A trotline is a very long line (it can be over a mile in length!)
which is anchored with heavy weights on each end (some watermen use scrap
engine blocks as anchors.) The line is baited at specific intervals and is allowed to
sink to the bottom. The waterman will start at one end of the line by pulling it up
and draping it over a roller attached to the side of the boat. As the boat moves
down the line, the line, bait, and hopefully crab, are slowly raised towards the
surface where the watchful waterman will scoop up the crab with a dip net.
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Crabbing - Hard Shell Crabs
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Working a Trotline
Photo courtesy of Harvesting the Chesapeake: Tools & Traditions
This method makes for very long, hard, tedious work. Most watermen prefer to
use eel for bait since it is more durable than other baits and can be reused many
times over. At the end of a long day of crabbing, the trotline is pulled aboard and
stored in a barrel of strong brine solution which helps preserve the bait. Recently,
many watermen have switched to bull lip for bait instead of eel since it is
significantly cheaper.
Click here for detailed trotline information
Crabbing Dredge
Crabbing Dredge
The crab dredge is used only during the winter months to dredge up crabs which
have burrowed into the bottom during their winter dormancy. The crab dredge is
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Crabbing - Hard Shell Crabs
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about 6 feet wide, weighs 250 pounds (dry), and resembles an oyster dredge.
Both employ the same structural design and have "bags" or netting made of chain
in the lower half and twine in the upper. The crab dredge has long tines or teeth
that can be adjusted at various angles so as to rake the bottom (they are set
according to the bottom hardness and how deeply the crabs are buried). Properly
set, the tined bar will force up bottom mud or sand in neat curl like snow in front
of a road plow. In the curl are rudely awakened crabs.
Traps
Traps
Strictly a recreational activity, trapping crabs can be lots of fun and very
productive. Since a boat is not required to trap crabs, it is a popular method of
crabbing. One method is to crab from a public bridge; you'll know when you find
one because other crabbers will be there. Crabbing from a public pier or dock, say
at a marina, is another great way to utilize a trap. Wading out into shallow water
and tying off your traps to sticks or poles is yet another way. And of course, a
boat makes an excellent crabbing platform!
Ring Net - The ring net is the simplest and
least expensive trap available. It consists
of two rings each of a different diameter
connected by netting. When baited and
lowered to the bottom, the trap lies flat on
the bottom. The crab will then approach
and start to feed on the bait. When the trap
is pulled up the top ring is lifted first this
trapping the crab in the netting. The
benefits of this
trap
are
its
simple design, ease of use, ease of storage (it folds
completely flat), and its low cost. The drawbacks are
that it only works in relatively calm water with flat
sandy or muddy bottoms and that it must be lowered
very slowly straight down.
Pyramid (folding star) and Box traps - These traps
work similarly in that they are made of metal and have
sides that swing down (open) when resting on the
bottom. They are more expensive and complicated than the ring net but can be
used in stronger currents and bottoms covered with small rocks and marine
growth. They can be "thrown" or "swung" into position. The pyramid trap (shown
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Crabbing - Hard Shell Crabs
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at left) can be easily stored since it folds completely flat but is very cumbersome
to use and fouls frequently. The box trap is bulkier but works consistently and
remarkably well. It is the trap of choice among recreational crabbers.
Hand Lines & Scapping
Hand Line and Dip Net (Scap Net)
The simplest method of crabbing is a hand
line and dip net and is strictly a recreational
activity. The bait along with a small weight
is simply tied to a line and lowered to the
bottom. The crabber, feeling the light
tugging of a feeding crab, slowly pulls the
line in, and, when the crab is just visible
beneath the surface, is quickly scooped up
with the net. This is a very inexpensive,
low-tech, way to catch crabs and is a great
way to get the whole family together! Make
sure your dip net's pole is no longer than six feet or it becomes difficult to handle.
Scapping
The most basic of all methods, scapping involves the age-old "man against crab"
ploy where a man simply takes a long-handled dip net (scap net) and wades
through the water looking for crabs among the eelgrass (no bait is used). This
method is practiced when hunting both hard and soft-shell crabs. An alternate
method employs the use of a small boat where the crabber stands on the bow and
uses the net's pole to push himself along near the shore. Crabs seek shallow
water where they can hide in the eelgrass in order to molt. Once a crab molts, it
is extremely weak and cannot easily swim away. Once spotted, the crabber
simply scoops it aboard. Scapping hard crabs is best practiced at night with a
lantern or bright light. Nocturnal crabs can be easily spotted swimming near the
surface. Some claim that shining a bright light into the water will attract curious
crabs.
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