Blue crabs from North Carolina could be harder to find, too

Fans of Maryland blue crabs have known they have been complicated to find in latest years and that numerous of the crabs at fish markets and restaurants are from North Carolina and Louisiana Now North Carolina is considering restrictions that could drop the annual harvest by According to the state s Division of Marine Fisheries North Carolina has historically provided of the annual blue crabs catch since In watermen in North Carolina caught million pounds of blue crab Since then numbers have dropped dramatically In an all-time low of million pounds of blue crabs were taken perhaps due to low demand during the COVID- pandemic The yield improved in with million hard crabs landed State regulators reported North Carolina s blue crabs have been overfished while remaining the state s majority of valuable fishery The state is fourth in the nation for its blue crab haul behind Louisiana Maryland and Virginia What s being considered in North Carolina North Carolina is debating whether to amend its blue crab fishery management plan which began in with the goal of rebuilding the stock to create a sustainable harvest by There is little evidence suggesting overfishing has ended according to the agency in a report which explained the bolstering measures are not working as intended and are not meeting sustainability objectives Among the proposed changes North Carolina s fisheries division is suggesting seasonal closures and trip limits The tweaks would also aim to protect mature female blue crabs including a bushel limit between June and December as well as a ban on catching females between January and May Related stories Blue crab population hits second-lowest level since in the Chesapeake Bay Claws and Effect WTOP looks at the murky future of the Chesapeake blue crab Claws and Effect What s driving Chesapeake Bay watermen away Commercial crabbers have commented issues other than overfishing could be contributing to the low numbers including water quality state change as well as the historical ups and downs of blue crab populations Critics of the restrictions announced the evidence that the state has been using in its stock assessments is outdated Source