Why Did Alaska Cancel Snow Crab Season?
Science
Everyone is talking about the closure of the Alaska snow crab season this year.
Fisheries biologists in Alaska estimate that 90% (about 1 billion) of the snow crab in the Bering Sea have “disappeared” over the past 5 years. During that time the Bering Sea has been significantly warmer than normal, stressing the crab which require very cold water to survive.
During the peak of the king crab industry, in 1981, Alaskan fisheries produced up to 200,000,000 pounds of crab. However, by 1983, Alaskan fisheries witnessed a freefall in numbers. Moreover, a crab loss by up to 90% in some places.
In addition to the ecological problem, the closure of the crab season will cause significant economic hardship to the countless people whose income is directly or indirectly dependent on the fishery.
According to CBS News:
“An estimated one billion crabs have mysteriously disappeared in two years, state officials said. It marks a 90% drop in their population.”
“In a major blow to America’s seafood industry, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game has, for the first time in state history, canceled the winter snow crab season in the Bering Sea due to their falling numbers. While restaurant menus will suffer, scientists worry what the sudden population plunge means for the health of the Arctic ecosystem.”
Trawlers are chasing cod into colder water up north and smoking all the crab on the seafloor. As a result, the crushed crab doesn’t come up in the trawl net when you tow as hard as they do. So, observers never see it and document the bycatch.
Some researchers just point to a natural northern migration.
There’s still so much that we don’t know about our waters, animal behavior. Furthermore, how wildlife will become affected by issues like climate change. However, we can see how it’s affecting fishing communities, seafood restaurants, and all of those along the supply chain in our greater food system.
Why Did Alaska Cancel Snow Crab Season?
