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Whole families can enjoy a day
catching crabs for food and fun
catching crabs for food and fun
TOP: A young
crabber pulls in a
line and readies a
net to catch another
crustacean.
BOTTOM: Success!
A young crabber
shows off the results
of her hard work
with the main
ingredients for
boiled crabs, Cajun
style.
crabber pulls in a
line and readies a
net to catch another
crustacean.
BOTTOM: Success!
A young crabber
shows off the results
of her hard work
with the main
ingredients for
boiled crabs, Cajun
style.
Every summer, Louisiana families gather along coastal roads
paralleling beaches, bayous, canals and coves, hoping to catch enough
crabs for a good Cajun boil.
Catching them can be as easy as throwing a line in the water.
Equipment shouldn’t break the bank either. To start crabbing, simply buy
some heavy cotton or nylon twine, a long-shafted, wide net with small mesh
and something to hold the catch. Some people prefer nets or traps, but
hand-lines catch just as many and are more fun to use.
Now, find a choice spot. Any shallow, sloping relatively snag-free
shoreline best suits hand-line action. A sandy beach or shelled shoreline
makes an ideal location. Docks or seawalls also offer excellent places to
throw lines or nets. If possible, go where people throw food scraps into
water, such as near waterfront restaurants, off fishing piers or by docks
where shrimp boats land. A dock with a fish-cleaning station also makes an
outstanding location for throwing lines or nets. Crabs swarm to gobble up
such freebies.
Although people can run traps or nets from boats, people without boats
can still fill an ice chest with succulent crabs from many locations. Nearly
every brackish or salty water body in Louisiana contains a population of
blue crabs.
“Crabs tolerate such a wide range of environmental conditions,” said
Vince Guillory, a Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries marine
biologist. “Blue crabs will tolerate everything from completely fresh to highly
saline, but they will be more abundant in brackish environment.”
Bait comes easy. Crabs readily devour any type of meat. Fish heads,
chicken or turkey necks, old ham bones with a little meat still attached all
make ideal crab attractants. Oily or bloody baits attract crabs from long
distances. Use hardy baits, though, because sharp crab pincers easily rip
apart soft bait, such as crawfish melts, wieners or liver, much too quickly.
“Fish, according to data we have,” Guillory said, “is not as productive
as some other baits. Crabs will eat fish, but recreational fishermen do
better with chicken necks or turkey necks. Crabs can smell chicken and
turkey better than fish.”
Almost like fishing, hand-lines provide enormous fun for entire families.
Cut twine into 15- to 20-foot lengths, enough to reach the bottom with
plenty of slack. Tie one end to a solid structure such as a piling and tie bait
to the other end. If crabbing during a swift tide, attach a small weight or
rock to the line to keep the bait on bottom. A weight should hold bait on the
bottom, but not prevent crabs from moving it. Drop a few tidbits into the
water for chum to attract those armored morsels, but not enough to feed
them.
Greedy, solitary beasts not inclined to sharing, crabs take bait in their
claws and attempt to haul it away from their cousins. When a crab
stretches a line, place a scoop net in the water. Pull the line slowly toward
the net as the crab hangs onto the bait. Lift it gently toward the surface
and place the scoop net under it. When the bait-clutching crab hovers over
the net, scoop upward from the rear to cut off its retreat. Plop the crab into
the holding container and toss the line out again for another.
Keep crabs in sturdy containers, impervious to sharp claws. Cover the
top to keep crabs out of direct sunlight and to prevent them from escaping.
Keep these crustaceans moist, but not submerged, unless in an aerated
container, such as a livewell that pumps fresh oxygen into the water. If kept
in an unaerated water-filled chest, they quickly consume all available
oxygen and may die. Boiling dead crabs could may someone sick.
Because crabs hold onto bait and don’t easily spook, children can
enjoy hours of fun catching them. They can make noise, explore the
shoreline, skip shells, poke around in rocks and generally enjoy being kids.
They won’t scare crabs -- much. Something about living encased in an
armored shell protected by two ominously sharp claws gives crabs an
invincible, if sour, attitude.
Usually, crabs provide enough steady action in a good area to keep
even the most impatient children interested. Let them haul in lines or use
the net. If they miss a crab now and then, so what. Don’t chastise a child
for not doing it right. Other crabs will come around, but children remain
small for such a short time. Catching good memories far outweighs
catching more crabs.
Moreover, because hand-lining for crabs requires such simple,
equipment, little hands can’t foul or destroy complicated or expensive
items. While nothing is childproof, hand-lines with no moving parts come
mighty close. If children do hopelessly foul lines, cut them off and throw
them away. Rerig more lines. A big spool of twine only costs a few dollars.
Release female crabs in the “berry stage” when she carries eggs
under her abdomen. Male and female blue crabs wear distinguishing “tabs”
on their abdomens. On a male crab, the belly tab roughly looks like a
man’s head and shoulders. Much wider and often darkly colored, female
belly tabs resemble a woman wearing an antebellum skirt. In these,
females carry and protect their eggs, which resemble tiny blackberries.
Killing one female in the berry stage could kill millions of crabs and potential
future meals.
“A single female blue crab may produce more than two million eggs in a
single spawning,” Guillory said. “It doesn’t take many female blue crabs to
supply enough crabs for the entire coast if every egg survived.”
Crabs must reproduce rapidly since relatively few reach adulthood.
Although crabs can live up to three years, biologists consider them an
annual crop because of excessive mortality. Besides people, almost
everything swimming in coastal devour crabs whenever they can catch
them.
paralleling beaches, bayous, canals and coves, hoping to catch enough
crabs for a good Cajun boil.
Catching them can be as easy as throwing a line in the water.
Equipment shouldn’t break the bank either. To start crabbing, simply buy
some heavy cotton or nylon twine, a long-shafted, wide net with small mesh
and something to hold the catch. Some people prefer nets or traps, but
hand-lines catch just as many and are more fun to use.
Now, find a choice spot. Any shallow, sloping relatively snag-free
shoreline best suits hand-line action. A sandy beach or shelled shoreline
makes an ideal location. Docks or seawalls also offer excellent places to
throw lines or nets. If possible, go where people throw food scraps into
water, such as near waterfront restaurants, off fishing piers or by docks
where shrimp boats land. A dock with a fish-cleaning station also makes an
outstanding location for throwing lines or nets. Crabs swarm to gobble up
such freebies.
Although people can run traps or nets from boats, people without boats
can still fill an ice chest with succulent crabs from many locations. Nearly
every brackish or salty water body in Louisiana contains a population of
blue crabs.
“Crabs tolerate such a wide range of environmental conditions,” said
Vince Guillory, a Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries marine
biologist. “Blue crabs will tolerate everything from completely fresh to highly
saline, but they will be more abundant in brackish environment.”
Bait comes easy. Crabs readily devour any type of meat. Fish heads,
chicken or turkey necks, old ham bones with a little meat still attached all
make ideal crab attractants. Oily or bloody baits attract crabs from long
distances. Use hardy baits, though, because sharp crab pincers easily rip
apart soft bait, such as crawfish melts, wieners or liver, much too quickly.
“Fish, according to data we have,” Guillory said, “is not as productive
as some other baits. Crabs will eat fish, but recreational fishermen do
better with chicken necks or turkey necks. Crabs can smell chicken and
turkey better than fish.”
Almost like fishing, hand-lines provide enormous fun for entire families.
Cut twine into 15- to 20-foot lengths, enough to reach the bottom with
plenty of slack. Tie one end to a solid structure such as a piling and tie bait
to the other end. If crabbing during a swift tide, attach a small weight or
rock to the line to keep the bait on bottom. A weight should hold bait on the
bottom, but not prevent crabs from moving it. Drop a few tidbits into the
water for chum to attract those armored morsels, but not enough to feed
them.
Greedy, solitary beasts not inclined to sharing, crabs take bait in their
claws and attempt to haul it away from their cousins. When a crab
stretches a line, place a scoop net in the water. Pull the line slowly toward
the net as the crab hangs onto the bait. Lift it gently toward the surface
and place the scoop net under it. When the bait-clutching crab hovers over
the net, scoop upward from the rear to cut off its retreat. Plop the crab into
the holding container and toss the line out again for another.
Keep crabs in sturdy containers, impervious to sharp claws. Cover the
top to keep crabs out of direct sunlight and to prevent them from escaping.
Keep these crustaceans moist, but not submerged, unless in an aerated
container, such as a livewell that pumps fresh oxygen into the water. If kept
in an unaerated water-filled chest, they quickly consume all available
oxygen and may die. Boiling dead crabs could may someone sick.
Because crabs hold onto bait and don’t easily spook, children can
enjoy hours of fun catching them. They can make noise, explore the
shoreline, skip shells, poke around in rocks and generally enjoy being kids.
They won’t scare crabs -- much. Something about living encased in an
armored shell protected by two ominously sharp claws gives crabs an
invincible, if sour, attitude.
Usually, crabs provide enough steady action in a good area to keep
even the most impatient children interested. Let them haul in lines or use
the net. If they miss a crab now and then, so what. Don’t chastise a child
for not doing it right. Other crabs will come around, but children remain
small for such a short time. Catching good memories far outweighs
catching more crabs.
Moreover, because hand-lining for crabs requires such simple,
equipment, little hands can’t foul or destroy complicated or expensive
items. While nothing is childproof, hand-lines with no moving parts come
mighty close. If children do hopelessly foul lines, cut them off and throw
them away. Rerig more lines. A big spool of twine only costs a few dollars.
Release female crabs in the “berry stage” when she carries eggs
under her abdomen. Male and female blue crabs wear distinguishing “tabs”
on their abdomens. On a male crab, the belly tab roughly looks like a
man’s head and shoulders. Much wider and often darkly colored, female
belly tabs resemble a woman wearing an antebellum skirt. In these,
females carry and protect their eggs, which resemble tiny blackberries.
Killing one female in the berry stage could kill millions of crabs and potential
future meals.
“A single female blue crab may produce more than two million eggs in a
single spawning,” Guillory said. “It doesn’t take many female blue crabs to
supply enough crabs for the entire coast if every egg survived.”
Crabs must reproduce rapidly since relatively few reach adulthood.
Although crabs can live up to three years, biologists consider them an
annual crop because of excessive mortality. Besides people, almost
everything swimming in coastal devour crabs whenever they can catch
them.
