If you would like your business listed on Beach-net Contact us here!ĭelaware Web Design & Internet Advertising - Coastal Images Inc. *Information courtesy of the University of Delaware Sea Grant Marine Advisory Service. Once hatched, the zoeae become part of the oceanic plankton and drift for 40 days or more, growing and molting through the megalopa stage to the first crab stage. The orange eggs gradually turn yellow and finally dark brown during the 2-week incubation period. Only 1 out of 1 million eggs will reach adulthood. Two to nine months later (depending on if it's spring or fall), the female will attach 700,000 to 2 million eggs to the swimmerets on the underside of her abdomen. The crabs then assume the doubler position (male carrying female) and might stay like this for 2 to 3 days before and after mating, which lasts 5 1/2 hours.įemales are about 1 1/2 years old at the time and will store the sperm for use in 2 or more spawnings during their 3-year life span.Īfter mating, the female migrates down the tributaries and bays seeking water of higher salinity. Just before the last molt, the female secretes a sex attractant that calms the male's blue claw. Males (blue-tipped claws) may mate any time during the last 3 or 4 molts. Ordinarily, females (red-tipped claws) mate only once, while they are in the soft shell state after the last molt. Some interesting videos on crabs.Order Authentic Maryland Crab Cakes Online!Ĭlick here to visit a new website from the University or Delaware College of Marine Studiesīlue crabs mate in brackish waters between May and October, peaking in late summer. So the next time you see a crab think about all the things you have learned about them. Blue crabs typically consume thin-shelled bivalves, annelids, small fish, plants and nearly any other item they can find, including carrion and even other blue crabs. The blue crab is an omnivore, eating both plants and animals. The natural predators of the blue crab include eels, drum, striped bass, spot, trout, some sharks, humans, and cownose sting rays. During this time the crab will molt up to 18 times! Predators These baby crabs molt every time they grow larger until the crabs are adults after 1 1/2 – 2 years. This egg mass can contain up to 2 million crab larvae. In May through August the following year the females extrude the eggs and carry them in an orange sponge like mass underneath of them. In the winter the females burrow into the muddy bottom of the bay. It is during this time that the crabs mate. This is because it happens at a later time. The male crabs then protect the female crabs by carrying them under their bodies. One interesting point to note is that a female could be mature and mated with a male crab, but not look pregnant. Just before mating the female crab molts. Female crabs only mate once in their lifetime. The bay is a perfect place for baby crabs to be raised in the protection of the sea grass beds. This means if a crab loses a leg from a predator it will grow a new leg the next time it molts. Blue crabs also have the ability to regenerate limbs. These newly molted crabs are called “soft shell” crabs. During this time they are very vulnerable to predators. Once a crab molts it takes a while for their new shell to become hard again. Molting is when a crab outgrows the hard outer shell and sheds it. The crab has a very hard shell which helps protect it from predators. The immature females have an apron that looks like a pyramid. It looks just like the dome of the Capitol in Washington. Adult females have a rounded apron with a pointy top. Males (blue-tipped claws) may mate any time. It looks just like the Washington Monument. Ordinarily, females (red-tipped claws) mate only once, while they are in the soft shell state after the last molt. Males have an apron that is slender and pointy. If you flip them over to see the white underside you will see what is called their “Apron”. Females have red claws as if they were painting their fingernails. There are a couple of ways to tell the difference between male and female crabs. Immature or teenage female crabs are called “Sallys”. Male crabs are called “Jimmys” and female crabs are called “Sooks”. Blue crabs have even migrated to Europe, Japan and the pacific ocean after being sucked into ship ballasts and transported there. We all know how delicious crabs are but how much do you know about crabs?Īll of you have seen crabs hanging to the side of jetties but how much do you really know about blue crabs? We see crabs in the Chesapeake bay but they live everywhere in the Atlantic ocean from Canada to Argentina in South America. Blue crabs are a vital part of the Chesapeake bays ecosystem and the economy of people who live on the bay.
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