Maryland's Secretary of Natural Resources Dr. Torrey C. Brown says recreational crabbing is the state's most popular participant sport.
He said more than 500,000 Maryland residents caught and consumed 11 million pounds of crabs during 1990. He also said commercial crab landings averaged more than 47 million pounds from 1982 to 1991, but last year's commercial catch was off by more than 30 percent.
In Harford County's portion of Chesapeake Bay, recreational crabbers traditionally set large numbers of collapsible traps and trot lines near the mouths of Gunpowder and Bush Rivers, locations where competition for the best sites is keen during the summer months.
Although it's illegal to set commercial crab pots inside most rivers, the number of pots just outside the tributaries boggles the mind. Consequently, confrontations between commercial and recreational crabbers frequently erupt, especially during times when crabs are somewhat scarce.
Although exact figures are not available, it's estimated that more than 2,000,000 crab pots are in Maryland's portion of Chesapeake Bay while nearly 1.5 million are actively used in Virginia waters. Simple arithmetic clearly shows us why Maryland's blue crab population is in trouble and how these problems began.
If each of the crab pots in Maryland's portion of Chesapeake Bay caught just five crabs daily for 180 days, May through October, the total catch would average 1.8 billion crabs annually. If only half the crabs were legal size, above the 5-inch minimum, the figure is still staggering.
According to DNR statistics, the state's annual commercial crab harvest is worth approximately $21 million. But when crabs become scarce, the price per pound or bushel, increases dramatically, causing crabbers to increase their harvest effort to capitalize on the profits.
A quick check with several Harford County crab houses revealed prices for large crabs ranging from $30 to $45 per dozen and as high as $95 per bushel.
"We run specials and give discounts for larger quantities, but the zTC people in this area still want the largest crabs," said Al Auckland, owner of Kent Island Seafood in Benson.
"I live on Kent Island and we're seeing more and more people catching crabs, and I agree something has to be done to save what's left, but everyone who catches them should be cut back -- not just one group."
