Normally at this time of season hundreds of boats would be scooping up thousands of adult crabs around the Farallon Islands. But this year local fishers say the ocean is so barren of adult crabs it reminds them of the days before the advent of the Clean Water Act. It is told that some crabbers are already packing up their gear. The big boats that came down from Oregon and other northern harbors to get an early jump on the Central California crab season have already left.
Bill Webb opined that they have been averaging one crab a pot. He said that it is the worst season he has ever seen. Like others Webb fishes for salmon and received a compensation check from the federal government after the unprecedented collapse of the Chinook salmon fishery last spring. He explained that if this season ends up being a bust, many of the crab fishers would not survive.
Crab specialist Peter Kalvass, a senior biologist with the Department of Fish and Game in Fort Bragg, attributed the sudden shortage of crab to natural environmental factors rather than any man-made problem at sea. He expressed that the Dungeness crab fishery has always moved in peaks and troughs — four years or so of great success, followed by four years of comparatively weaker production.
Kalvass believes the numbers will continue to decline before they improve, most likely in 2010-11. He added that the season after next looks really promising for crab. Fishers are seeing lot of crabs that are 4 to 5 inches wide and they look like they’re in good condition.
