Life History Of The Blue Crab

The blue crab (Callinectes sapidus Rathbun) of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts supports the largest crab fishery in the United States. Chesapeake Bay on the Atlantic coast and the estuarine waters of Louisiana on the Gulf coast now furnish 75 percent of the catch. Fluctuations in the abundance of blue crabs have occurred over the past half century in Chesapeake Bay where year-round fisheries have long been established. This report examines the nature and causes of fhese fluctuations. Several natural factors which appear to regulate the annual survival rate and the abundance of the blue crab are discussed on the basis of available knowledge.

This is a species profile on the blue crab. Species profiles are literature summaries of the taxonomy, morphology, distribution, life history, habitats, and environmental requirements of coastal species of fishes and aquatic invertebrates. The blue crab occurs in lower reaches of freshwater rivers, estuaries, and coastal waters along the Atlantic seaboard and Gulf of Mexico.