RIVA, Md. - Blue crabs in the Chesapeake Bay are at record numbers, although there has also been a mysterious drop in adult females, according to an annual winter survey released Thursday.
The survey found an estimated 764 million crabs in the bay, nearly two-thirds more than last year. The increase was highest among juvenile crabs, which totaled 587 million, nearly triple last year's total.Â
Gov. Martin O'Malley said the numbers, the highest level since 1993, are "good news for watermen, it's good news for the bay, it's good news for jobs, it's good news for our economic recovery."
The result are the latest evidence of a continuing rebound for the bay's biggest money maker following severe harvest restrictions put in place in Maryland and Virginia in 2008 following a population drop. The comeback was interrupted last winter when extreme cold killed off nearly a third of the bay's crabs, but the harvest restrictions kept the population above recovery targets.
3 comments:
I'm sure O'Malley is trying to figure out how to get more taxes out of crabs
This is delicious news!
That's what you get when the Bay gets a D+ grade? These people are just a bunch of political buffoons that want to generate as much money toward their pockets as possible! Regulating for dollars...
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