Female Crabs in Geographe Bay
Submitted by nev on Fri, 2011-10-07 22:48
Did anyone see the Win News tonight? Apparently there was a story on the large amount of female crabs that enter Geographe Bay shallows prior to going into their spawning cycle. There are certainly a high percentage of female crabs in the shallows here in the winter months , then they just seem to go quiet in the warmer months. I wonder how long before a closure becomes effective down here ? Could be a good thing , what do you think?
Howard George
Posts: 544
Date Joined: 10/03/11
Why !!!!!!!
Since the Gov. stopped commercial crab fishing in the Bay the crab numbers have increased and the size of the crabs have increased so why would you impose any sort of closure. What affects our numbers is the amount of crabs that are recruited from the estuary over at Bunbury and it doesn't help when fisheries give special licenses for commercial guys to catch the crabs as they leave the estuary. If you'r not happy with the state of the fishery just don't go fishing for them but I can't see any reason why I shouldn't go fishing for them.
cudbfishn
Posts: 1311
Date Joined: 06/04/09
Why would you go and catch
Why would you go and catch your quota every week of female crabs, just because you can? I just dont get it. Id support a ban.
Man Overboard
Posts: 957
Date Joined: 16/01/10
Why on earth would you
Why on earth would you support a ban, when the numbers are increasing ?????
Is it because you have NFI ?
cudbfishn
Posts: 1311
Date Joined: 06/04/09
Well I do have NFI. I live in
Well I do have NFI. I live in perth.
All Im goin by is what nev said. If there are a lot of female spawning crabs in 1 place at 1 time why not protect them. Queensland have totally protected there female mudcrab poplulation.
But also nev failed to mention that numbers are increasing so thats a different story. And BTW I do like male crabs better.
Howard George
Posts: 544
Date Joined: 10/03/11
What makes you think we catch only Females.cudbfishn
The catch consists of both sexes with a predominance of female but you'ld have no problem of getting all male crabs if you wished because of the numbers. The area that you might choose to protect is the esturine systems around Bunbury if numbers look like dropping but as yet it just gets better every year. I don't know about the other fishers down here but I usually stop once a lot of eggs appear on the females and I wouldn't mind guessing that it is the norm among the other fishers as well. It's not all catch and pillage in the fishing comunity as some green groups would have you believe.
snappermiles
Posts: 2102
Date Joined: 05/11/10
what i always wonder
is why everyone goes out and keeps mainly the male crabs? yes the females are the breeders but with out the males there useless! the females taste just as good imo
ALL FISHERMEN ARE LIARS EXCEPT YOU AND ME! AND IM NOT SO SURE ABOUT YOU!
Seaquest
Posts: 1141
Date Joined: 22/10/09
No need for a ban when
No need for a ban when everyone you speak to down here say the last few years they have seen numbers increase dramatically.
Female crabs have always been dominate down here.
Cudbfishn I don't get your comment. You obviously don't know anything about the crabs down here.
Males and females taste the same to me.
Dale
Posts: 7930
Date Joined: 13/09/05
It's been well documented by
It's been well documented by Fisheries WA as to why the female to male ratio is so one sided in the jennies favour around Busselton. When I go out, I usually get 16 jennies and maybe 2 or 3 blue boys, every time too. So I dont know what the outcome was for the fisheries study, but it's been that way for a long time now.
Cheers
Dale
"Just because you are a Character, Doesn't mean you have Character."
Mr Wolf
grantarctic1
Posts: 2546
Date Joined: 03/03/11
Are we causing this ?
Not trying to throw more wood on the fire , but i have wondered for a while now, are we as fisho's causing this to happen ?
For many years fishing for crabs i never took females thinking this was the right thing to do, but lately ( last couple years ) i have seen a huge increase in female numbers too. I was wondering that alot of people do the same thing and after time have we taken too many males and the ratio has swung in favour of the jennies ( any thoughts on this theory ? )
I think also as we ban fishing ( of any type ) pressure is moved to other species and area's. I'm sure the guy's down south see a huge increase of fisho's in their area's as soon as the demersal ban start's.
This is JMO and it would be good to see the outcome of any studies about what's happening and why, before they close another fishery to the public.
Cheers Grant..
adam87
Posts: 291
Date Joined: 16/05/11
I agree lots more females
I agree lots more females now
the few times a year i go crabing i take the females now
id rather take some females rather than all males i think it eavens it up this way
ive had a few people tell me i shouldnt take them but its legal as long as they dont have eggs hey, and i like to eat them!
harro
Posts: 1959
Date Joined: 07/02/08
c,mon
wtf battered crab is an entre for my puka!!! ,
i guess people catch more blue,s or the majority say so is because i would imagine most females go back with eggs, and others dont know that you can catch females, i remember not too long ago some guy told me that you were not allowed to keep females, obviousley this isnt the case but i,m sure he,s not alone in thinking so,
:::: Bass Hunter ::::
wazzbat
Posts: 977
Date Joined: 19/01/10
1 Male + 10 Females = 10
1 Male + 10 Females = 10 Females with eggs.
10 Males + 1 Female = 1 Female with eggs.
Just a thought . Don't bite my head off. I know it's not that simple and I have no scientific evidence to back my theory. Just thinking out loud (and on the keyboard)???
I have always left the females alone but like Grant, have wondered whether this is the right thing to do? If you go by my equation, I'd say it is but I know there are probably a lot more factors which affect the balance of crab gender/population.
I fish for the future - Cause I can't bloody catch anything!
hezzy
Posts: 1534
Date Joined: 27/11/09
anyone who who was born and
anyone who who was born and bred or has lived/fished in busso geo bay area for a long time knows the catch ratio of big females has always been much higher than the males
even as kids living in west busso our family in the late 60, s early 70s rowed an bondwood dinghy around just offshore and you had no problem with taking numbers of crabs easily .......... the current well controlled fishery that exists now is as good as it gets .........the only big difference was you virtually had to beach launch in winter , as most of the ramps where blocked up with sand and weed ......and their was no marina ........so far less people could access them through winter
i have fished every winter and we always have got a feed easily usually , just work the local spots , the numbers have been much better since the commercial activity was removed , and do seem to be increasing .
their is no need for a seasonal closure at this point
id be far more worried about the seagrass meadows in the bay ,and number of private moorings , beach erosion ......etc
the shire in its wisdom should have a mandated 100mtre setback from the high tide mark for public open space all along the busso foreshore imo ....exactly like the quindalup reserves ....it would be a fantastic gift to future generations
if you want to look after crabs ......... the cutting through & opening of the geo bay marina back into the wonnerup estuary and river , would be a great mini nursery IMO , rather than the current flood gate stagnant cesspool it becomes each feb /march
just install some hydraulic ram gates for the winter storm surges , open it up and keep it open for 99% of the year
hezzy
OFW 11
evil flourishes when good men do nothing