Green crabs are invading the Pacific Northwest coast | Oregon Field Guide

In 2006, invasive green crabs were just starting to show up in Oregon bays. Nearly two decades later, these non-native critters are multiplying at alarming rates and threatening Pacific Northwest shellfish.
*Editor's Note: the Oregon Fish and Wildlife biologist featured in this video is Summer Henricksen. We apologize for the misspelling.
Invasive European green crabs threaten Northwest shellfish industries www.opb.org/article/2024/01/0...
Dealing with edible invaders: Oregon triples the bag limit for European green crabs: www.opb.org/article/2022/08/1...
Scientists say: eat more green crabs www.opb.org/article/2021/11/2...
Chapters:
0:16 Why European Green Crabs are dangerous for the Oregon coast
1:44 2006 surveying and documentation
2:16 The worry and what is happening in Washington state
2:47 European Green Crabs dig up and destroy eel grass, an important habitat
3:19 Female European Green Crabs
4:23 European Green Crabs evolutionary traits for survival
5:15 People can take 35 European Green Crabs per day per person
5:40 ODFW
6:20 How to identify European Green Crabs (5-3-5)
7:28 What do you do with European Green Crabs
8:21 The importance of identifying European Green Crabs
For more stories like this visit OPB online at opb.org.
Oregon Public Broadcasting aims to elevate and amplify the community, connect Oregon and its neighbors, and illuminate a wider world through stories. OPB Every Day. OPB Everywhere.
One way to support OPB and the work of public media is to subscribe to our channel for new OPB videos every month: kzbin.info?sub_confi...
Member support makes all the videos on the OPB KZbin channel possible, and everything else you love. Ensure the next important story is covered and join in as a Sustainer now at give.opb.org/opb/?s=OAMEGNS22...
#greencrabs #GreenCrabInvasion #invasivespecies #invasivecrabs #crabbing #OPB #Oregon #PacificNorthWest

[@NWHomesteader]

They seem easy enough to identify. It would be nice if odfw hosted events where the public could harvest large numbers, and then odfw personnel could look over the “catch” and thus help educate more people.

[@cynthiamason4069]

Wonderful idea!

[@matthewwelsh294]

They should. In Florida, they eat Lionfish

[@GardenerEarthGuy]

​@@matthewwelsh294iguana also

[@brandozitek8825]

Let go 🦀 let get them since no registration

[@catherinepraus8635]

I’d be in for that but you’re way to logical seems like a no brainer to me

[@USMC978]

When my family moved here to America from Cambodia. We landed in Maine. We immediately scoped out costal areas. The green crabs were under every rock/seaweed. Caught 5 paint buckets full. This was back in 90s. The game warden told us to dump it all out. Then another one showed up and stopped us. Told us they were invasive and catch as many as you can. They don’t have much meat but we still used them for some of our dishes. My mom would ferment them in jars and they lasted for years. There’s a lot of Cambodia/Thai/Laos/Vietnam dishes that use the crabs just for the flavor. Even to this day. I can catch over a 100lbs of these crabs with just a string and chicken under 2-3hrs

[@jic1]

@@khmuvisuals1669 You mean like the huge number of invasive green crabs in California that they talked about at 9:20?

[@nunayabusiness5850]

tell me more about the fermented crabs please thanks.

[@USMC978]

@@nunayabusiness5850 it’s just crabs in a jar filled with fish sauce. Just let it drown in the fish sauce and you can use it to flavor the dishes.

[@user-ml1rm2fh6f]

Do fermented crabs made with female green crabs that have eggs taste better?

[@USMC978]

@@user-ml1rm2fh6fyes, the orange eggs have a salty and sweet taste. I would purposely eat the female ones and take the eggs and mix it with my rice. 😋😋😋

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

Well done video. As a commercial green crab fisherman here in Maine, the clock is indeed ticking for the Pacific Northwest (I went to college in Olympia WA so the problem over there is important to me too), and I think the greater risk as the biologist was warning is not removing them. I think possibly a better approach for the state is indeed educating the public to minimize any bycatch and also monitoring populations so as not to trigger the hydra effect as they did in California. Picking meat from green crabs is really only doable for the very large 3” to 4” bulls, and there is a bit of a technique to picking green crabs versus others. Most green crabs are well under 3” but make excellent soup stock, are of course extremely delicious as soft shells when they molt in the spring, and even as hard shells can be deep fried (my favorite), though finely crushing and then soaking them and boiling them to extract the protein on top of the boiled water is maybe the easiest was to extract meat for making various dishes, they are indeed excellent as fertilizer, and research in in Maine shows they have a protein which is a strong anti-hyperglycemic so has promise as a supplement for millions of Americans struggling with pre diabetes. Well done video for all involved.

[@Darthdoodoo]

Can be ground up and used to feed other animals

[@msmoe8687]

Wow, that was a lot of really cool information. Thanks.

[@SunriseLAW]

What is your opinion on blue crabs? Not a crab eater myself but I have caught/cooked for others. Green crabs look EASY compared to the little blue crabs served by the bushel (literally...by the bushel) all over the Baltimore-Washington DC area. Crab Houses and Pubs there commonly have paper covering the tables, people make a big mess picking the bits of meat, leaving ginormous piles of shells.

[@Doc62J]

Green crab is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey's uh, green crab-kabobs, green crab creole, green crab gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple green crab, lemon green crab, coconut green crab, pepper green crab, green crab soup, green crab stew, green crab salad, green crab and potatoes, green crab burger, green crab sandwich. That- that's about it

[@sh6460]

😂😁

[@salmon.enthusiast]

Yo you should run for office

[@Plasmastorm73_n5evv]

Thanks Bubba!! 🤣😂😅😁

[@Doc62J]

@@Plasmastorm73_n5evv 🤣🤣

[@extraart1]

You should open a restaurant

[@nickbarker561]

ODFW is so much more effective as an agency than WDFW. Here in Washington, European green crabs have been allowed to run rampant. It is illegal to remove or possess them here; WDFW "asks the public to call if somebody spots one." As with most most public concerns, these reports are almost entirely ignored. My understanding is that WDFW shares the same concern as ODFW - that native species like Dungeness could be mistaken for European green crabs - but instead of setting a bag limit, WDFW banned green crab retention altogether. Just as with salmon and steelhead, this policy is a solution in search of a problem. I can't help but wonder how long it will take for these people to realize that their "solutions" have long been a big part of the problem.

[@kaibrock1859]

They don't think that people would mistake european green crabs with dungness crabs. Thry think that people like in the past where people submit photos of what they think are green crabs which turned out to be native shore crabs,kelp crabs or another native crabs. In Washington its illegal to possess a live European Green Crab. WDFW and Washington Sea Grant catches and removes green crabs from detected areas.

[@Plasmastorm73_n5evv]

They're sure going to get a problem for their solution when the green crab have taken over completely and wiped out the native shellfish populations. WDFW is taking on a stupid attitude. Much like Florida did with the Burmese Python problem now they have so many that they are eating their way through the native food chain and FWS is now allowing special hunts with monetary rewards for each catch. They have a bounty hunt every year to try and stem the problem but it is actually too late.

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

Sorry to hear that I have an old undergrad connection to Puget Sound and would hate to see that whole area decimated like they’ve done here in Maine.

[@kaibrock1859]

@@MaineGreenCrabs Does Maine have any native crabs that look similar to Green Crab? Nice content by the way, what trap do you use?

[@SunriseLAW]

This is why I feel an unlimited catch of green crabs would work here in OR... especially if NO PERMIT were required to catch them. I spent many hours on Florence, OR's "South Jetty" and the docks of Winchester Bay. People seem to go out of their way to follow the 'size and species' laws. They might fear the very large fines, but mostly they don't want to look (and feel) stupid to the other people on the dock. So, if people are in doubt.... they ask the experienced crabbers, who are HAPPY, EAGER, and PROUD to share their knowledge. Meanwhile... everyone on the dock knows that if they want legal crabs, they can be purchased for a tiny fraction of the fines levied against illegal crabbing.

[@matthew3136]

Change the name of the "GREEN" crab?? call it the 535 so people can identify them.

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

Actually that bit was a little misleading the carapace is pretty much always green it’s the under side which can range from green to yellow-green to orange brown. Otherwise their proper name is Carcinus maenas.

[@matthew3136]

@@MaineGreenCrabs I can't wait to visit Maine. What a beautiful state.

[@MrAcuta73]

What scared me in this video? The idea that they can be a detriment to eelgrass. We have only recently got our grass beds to a point Black Brant are finally returning to historical areas. Increase public education and remove limits...then promote harvest. We have problems with over harvest of desirable species threatening population. Make green crab the next foodie trend via social media. Sheeple make amazing tools.

[@shakeyj4523]

Yep, tell people they are some kind of delicacy.

[@post13]

Lib mentality right there

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

Not only do they dig up the eel grass burrowing, but will do the same to shorelines putting a lot of sediment into the water. The bigger issue is they decimate filter feeder populations which then leads to serious water quality issues.

[@libertyforall5764]

👍 No joke. Social media tells idiots something is trending and they rush to follow the herd.

[@SamSeth]

I had no idea about the green crab problem. The state needs to invest in signs showing the difference between dungeness, red rock, and green crab. 7:00 they are quite easy to indentify - we need signs at every popular ocean access site, and no limit on harvest. The state's "bycatch" excuse for keeping a limit on them is lame. They'll only make regulatory changes once the population reaches catastrophic levels

[@eljanrimsa5843]

They probably don't want to have to deal with people who use this as an excuse to collect crabs on a commercial level. When they are so invasive to the ecosystem, people collecting them won't make a dent in the population of the invasive species, but 10% misidentified bycatch may hurt the already vulnerable native ones.

[@manfredstrappen7491]

The amount of people violating rule signs right next to said signs tells me that’s not gonna work. Then there are also the folks that think for every rule, there should be a sign.

[@orphangirlfineart4860]

This 👆 the bycatch issue could be a none issue. An educational campaign along with heavy finds if you are found with bicatch would be enough to ensure folks new how to identify them. I would love to here what it takes to get a special take permit to allow you to go over limit.

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

Yes good signage at popular beaches, coves, etc would probably be very adequate with the Marine Resources focusing on monitoring population size and closing down harvests when populations get too low as to trigger hydra effect like they got in California.

[@StreyX]

I wonder how plausible it would be to hold a a big crab boil event. People come by learn a bit about the crabs, they go out catch some, staff is on hand to identify the correct crabs and return the rest, and invasive buggers get prepared and eaten by the groups that catch them.

[@rngnv4551]

I was just thinking that volunteers could go out then setup tents and cleaning stations to educate as well as help the public understand what they're catching.

[@WillyFish]

I’ve harvested many green crabs on the shore right where Cat dug up those green crabs at Netarts. Every recreational angler has a duty to harvest the green crabs!!!

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

They will also undoubtedly be good for some of the bottom fish out there like they are here on the east coast.

[@M.Mae.M]

Come on Steve, give people more credit! Very easy to tell the difference.

[@Plasmastorm73_n5evv]

When they are full grown yes, when they are juvenile or younger...not so much.

[@cyslim]

Having grown up on the Oregon coast and fished most of my life…you wouldn’t believe the quantity of people actively taking in crabs that apparently can’t tell male from female…

[@benmcreynolds8581]

I don't like anything that messes with our native Dungeness Crab's & our other native biodiversity.. Just like how our temperate rainforests r uniquely important. Our rocky nutrient rich cold waters ocean habitat is equally as important.

[@sundragon7703]

If the green crabs are as prolific as stated, Oregon and Washington shoreline communities could have an opportunity to resurrect their fisheries by producing products from Asian-style fish/crab sauce to organic fertilizers to animal feed on a small scale (to start). One state's pest is a company's inexpensive resource to exploit.

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

You betcha! The biggest issue though is for populations outside of Cambodian and Vietnamese (Long Beach) communities there isn’t a US market for crabs this size, most Americans just don’t have them in their culinary repertoire. Yet. 😉

[@tihzho]

Green crabs are considered a culinary delicacy across much of their native range. In Spain green crabs are consumed in soups and sauces while in Italy they're eaten soft-shell and for their roe.

[@timellis9293]

Only problem is that the government will only allow you to harvest 35 a day.

[@tihzho]

@@timellis9293 That's dumb AF

[@youngcho5112]

Did you guys know that they are excellent baits for fishing? In the eastern seaboard, we use them a lot for catching blackfish or drums. Any fish that eats crustacean would be the target species. Especially, the blackfish are voracious eaters of these crabs. The blackfish are very good gaming fish and has an excellent tasting meat. You might want to introduce them in your waters.

[@gabriellemotta9974]

I’ve done invasive crab control before and we were able to donate the crabs to a zoo near us. Would this be another possible way for organizations to dispose of the crab?

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

They also make excellent poultry and hog food. They also could help to address concerns for “organic” feed in those situations.

[@ChrisTuckerPhotography]

from the internet: "Green crabs can be downright delicious. To be more specific, we're talking about soft-shelled green crab, similar to what you'd find with blue crabs down in the mid-Atlantic" so lets get with the program!~

[@alanhelton]

So because your department of wildlife is unwilling to educate hunters, they oppose a bag limit that guarantees the green crab will flourish over all others, sounds completely ignorant

[@user-gx4sg4op9z]

Post signs of different crabs. Rules when where. Great information

[@dudereno21]

I always keep green crabs. They're usually too small to eat but you can make a nice tomato sauce and stocks with them

[@TheCommunicationCoach]

More invasive species, it's sickening to think of the recklessness of all who brought them here somehow. Just like Asian Carp, and Lionfish, and Monster Hornets, WA is being hit very hard. Only with everyone's awareness can we stop and reverse this trend, shame on Fish and Wildlife, WE are NOT "OK" with such numbers and restrictions, especially when it's easy to ID them.

[@Plasmastorm73_n5evv]

Washington made it illegal to take or possess green crab...So no matter HOW aware the public is there is NOTHING they can do to stop the spread until WDFW gets their heads out of their keisters and drops that law.

[@markg1490]

I really love these videos. Thank you for sharing.

[@OPB]

Glad you like them!

[@joeblow4639]

It’s so obvious as how to identify the crab. You need to up the limit.

[@Plasmastorm73_n5evv]

REALLY? Can you identify a juvenile or baby green crab this way? (Just a hint the answer is NO!)

[@davidray6962]

Green crab reportedly make an amazing bisque. Bisque is a type of soup which cans very well. Seems to me this is an economic opportunity.

[@cpcxgsr]

feels like Oregon is making green crabs a bigger issue than it should be... The experts already said they are edible. If so, there should be a HUGE market for fishermen to catch these so called invasive creatures. For every green crab that is see, I think of $$$

[@camilaluna6025]

I wonder if @JKenjiLopezAlt would make a video promoting eating green crab. PNW chefs could start the "craze" that sweeps the nation and help our protect our native ecosystem.

[@DonnaCsuti-ji2dd]

I am in my mid 70s and green lined shore crabs and red shore crabs have been on the West coast all of my life, and if you have the book Between the Pacific Tides written by a close friend of Steinbeck in the 1920s we have always had them.

[@inharmonywithearth9982]

Yes they make huge amounts of money lying and fearmongering the public about animals and plants. They lie about the Asian jumping worm too. It's also know as Alabama Jumper and it's been in the Southeastern Usa at least since the 60s but they are telling people it's a new thing and will kill all the plants in the world. It's not harmed Alabama.

[@robtopham6095]

On the east coast we use these crabs for bait for fishing. They are great for fishing for Tog and we pay for them live. Maybe another option for catching them professionally by trained fishermen.

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

Right on!

[@BELCAN57]

Looks like an opportunity for seafood lovers and providers. Green Crab should be on every seafood restaurant menu.

[@adamjensen795]

I will definitely be looking for these next month in netarts bay. I have yet to catch these in my crab traps yet. But I will look under rocks

[@Plasmastorm73_n5evv]

When did people stop caring about good grammar and spelling?

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

If your gear has bigger than 1” mesh most green crabs will just walk out like they do with lobster traps here in Maine. I commercially fish for them and use .5” wire mesh.

[@outdoorfreedom9778]

How big do they get compared to a Dungeness crab??

[@dpetit843]

Im from Charleston SC we have a delicious dish that was created here, She Crab Soup. Traditionally made with blue crab meat and roe. Unfortunately harvesting of sponge crabs (pregnant female crabs) for over a hundred years has started to effect the population and now is illegal. They must be returned to the water when caught. Im not sure what types of roe they are using to make the soup now. Seeing those green sponge crabs made me think it may be a viable option. It is a hugely popular dish here and if they are similar in taste im sure there is a market for that roe here and beyond.

[@cpcxgsr]

I don't see why not? They are similar in size to blue crabs... So their meat structure should be similar... I feel like Oregon is making this a bigger deal than it should. If they are scared of it being invasive, they should let the fishermen catch and make money off of it

[@liindawgg]

catch them and make crab broth, fish sauce (made with crabs), theres also a noodle dish called bun rieu that uses these types of crabs by pounding/grinding crabs and straining the shells and use the essence for the broth.

[@liindawgg]

also salted pickeled crabs can be made from these as well! Which is usually eaten with rice or in papaya salads.

[@lilmsgs]

They should give special permits to people who can prove that they can ID green crabs

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

The real issue is there is currently no significant domestic market for green crabs. The biggest market is for bait in the mid Atlantic states, there are some of us also working on developing a domestic seafood market for them too. It really won’t be until industry gets involved for pharmaceuticals (green crabs constrain a protein that’s a strong anti-hyperglycemic, and the chitin their shells are comprised of is now being developed into bio plastic, it will take that order of magnitude to really address the scale of the problem.

[@mikeblitzen]

thats too easy for the government to figure out.

[@dioniciotorres4290]

Are they ok to eat? If so are they tasty like other crabs?

[@user-qu5en3el3y]

Forest and Bubba be talking right now.

[@Legna1826]

Bubba Gump’s Green Crab Burgers. “ Thats all I gotta say about that."

[@keithsextonakathebluerose]

I suggest a crabbing contest along shorelines with people on foot and other competitors in small boats. Competitors gather all they can in timed events with different locations. Modest prize money for different categories, including cooking competitions with harvested green crabs from the day. It won't take much in prizes or cash to get people to participate.

[@AndrewBeveridge461]

ODFW guy's desk clutter is nearing the crisis stage.

[@NWforager]

ODFW can put a picture and QR code on the permits . you could look at HD pics to ID the green vs other crabs . AI would be a good use for this right now to scan and ID

[@calgreg2569]

What do they taste like? Like dungeness?

[@DamBevers]

So in other words, all Fish and Wildlife authorities need to do is make each person who wants to obtain a permit take a 5 minutes course to differentiate between European green crabs and native crabs, and the critical importance of doing so when collecting crabs. So why aren’t they doing this? Their delay is costing us our food chain.

[@ynotawoody]

The first step to controlling the little green morsels, is to put them on the menu.

[@swimbait1]

Should spend more on educating people on how to identify them and make no limit on capture.

[@pupdowg420]

How do they taste?

[@davidorth4906]

With butter and garlic they are wonderful. a soup is comfortable and warming to the soul.

[@paulripperger565]

How about you use them for bait like we do on the east coast

[@pb4920]

Ive noticed this too! Thousands around the rocks. Im sure if we put a crab pot around there

[@budwhite3570]

I originally thought ya had to get crab rings and go out in a boat or off a dock, but I see folks getting them from rocks or on a walkway, sounds great,..I live by Coos Bay, near the north bend bridge, and there is plenty of water, I should look at rocks or near the short, I think there is no permit process required,....and my used is for cooking. Think its easy to remember,...3 and 5 horns for green, ten side horns for dungenous, and oh, 35 per day only.

[@slugnaholowaa7406]

Are they good eating?

[@Plasmastorm73_n5evv]

Yes they are. Much like the flavor and texture if Dungeness crabs.

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

Yes, there is also some health benefit, eg research here in Maine shows they have a protein which is a strong anti-hyperglycemic, additionally the chitin in their shells can bind to lipid cholesterol and reduce blood cholesterol. The shell when ground in a coffee grinder can be added to just about anything. Heck I put it into my everything bagels! 😉

[@ba7man1618]

So when are we gonna have an open season on sea lions? Or is that still not an issue? ODFW do better!

[@sunshine7453]

Have you ever heard green crabs in butter garlic sauce that green crabs most fear?

[@Exploitiv]

Green crabs are tasty and plentiful!! I hope to see these on the menu

[@RoseNZieg]

I think that if people are educated about the species, there should be no limit.

[@JTA1961]

That one guy looks like Santa~Claws🦀

[@mikusoxlongius]

There's some interesting invasive species stumbling from Old Mexico.

[@halsmith3021]

Green crab is up here in Ketchikan, Alaska

[@timg5171]

Saw a similar video from the San Francisco Bay Area. They brought in otter’s to handle it successfully.

[@brandobjj]

Id love to see if a chef could put several small ones in a duck press and make a table side bisque or soup... One of my favorite soups is a black pepper and crab egg drop soup.

[@jrtstrategicapital560]

Yes..they are delicious as crab bisque! I would definitely set up a crab bisque shack on the shoreline👍

[@rchydrozz751]

I've had those. They are really hard to get rid of.

[@427max]

We’ve got them now on the west coast of Vancouver Island

[@MikeMassey-fi5of]

Makes no sense to limit the catch, but based on how many the woman uncovered, it’s already too late.

[@DeeSmith001]

They come from cruise ships. We had none here two decades ago on the east coast of Canada and as soon as the Dutch cruise ships started calling into Charlottetown harbour the green crabs arrived and started decimating the shellfish stocks.

[@BurchellAtTheWharf]

Here on the East coast, sculpin are starting to eat the green crabs

[@mikejackson2228]

They've been using them for crab stock in restaurants on the east coast.

[@user-gt5zs3jo9w]

Let people crab for the green crabs for free don't charge him a crabbing, 😊 during invasive species let's get

[@BlueMountainBandit]

There's no stopping it now apparently their good in soup 🍲

[@4x4me2]

or they are good in soup

[@extraart1]

And on the OTHER hand; the delicious blue crabs that have all but disappeared from the Chesapeake bay, Pamlico sound and other east coast tributaries, are so plentiful in Italian waters that they don't know what to do with all of them!

[@69bobr]

Put up signs by the coastline, with pictures, that show how to properly identify the green crabs that the public can remove.

[@grakkerful]

Reintroduce some sea otters! They wouldn't make a dent for a while, but they love crab and would probably love the area.

[@deanevangelista6359]

Invasive crabs plus Old Bay seasoning equals busy restaurants.

[@frankmacleod2565]

22 crabs from under one rock? Looks like they are here to stay

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

They probably are, sadly. The real trick is to knock the populations back and manage it so native species have the opportunity to coexist. These crabs are extremely aggressive.

[@frankmacleod2565]

@@MaineGreenCrabs thanks for your work. Excellent video.

[@dianacryer]

Towns along the coast could have a green crab festival every year. Have people there that can identify the catches. Then, no limit.

[@dronesama949]

Isn't there a man who created a whiskey from these crabs? time to get creative Oregon.

[@creativecatalyst777]

Crabs are invading Oregon? Well don't think of pinning this on me. I haven't been to that state in years😂😂😂

[@Salish_Redbone]

6:54 - It's Green if three by five can be seen.

[@skysteppes1017]

So they are easy to identify but they don’t trust us to correctly identify them.

[@SoberOKMoments]

In Maine these invasive crabs are being used as food, specifically as soft shelled delicacies, by an enterprising young man featured in another KZbin video. Look it up.

[@user-cz2uz4hj5g]

Odfw will wait till it’s to late for the dungeons crabs

[@rickyrodriguez4181]

If that is the problem why don't you have an open season form all year round? Maybe. People can find something To Do with them even if it is fertilizer?

[@robzombieshot]

Why not have a fishing group go out weekly or so getting approval to find these crabs. Then to double check the crabs, another group verifies them as green vs not. Kinda like a green crab cookoff competition... so all the participants are all double and triple checked for correct crabs. And none correct are returned to the sea.

[@Oro-Blanco]

Can we have the green crab in the supermarket? Just had fresh dungeness crab for $5.99/lbs yesterday. would definitely try the Green ones. And that should provide some economic incentive to get rid of these aliens.

[@wangshuokevin]

Someone needs to open a business that sells deep fried green crabs as snacks!

[@fswatyahoocom]

can they be eaten?

[@ValentinSerrano-nj4dc]

To be honest that many under is very worrying no joke

[@NullLang]

it is so wasteful to not use them as food

[@KhristopherTaylor]

Didn't we used to actually deep fry Blue crabs whole crunchy stuff when you deep fry them

[@louislorenzi-prince3842]

Sounds like a losing battle folks...the green crabs have won.

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

To some extent yes. The real issue is management of the population so native species are not eradicated.

[@amiralions2681]

They're already being served in restaurants on the East Coast. Catch them and sell them for food.

[@timothyogburn7656]

Hopefully some folks take advantage of year long trapping, open up a green crabb specialty steak house ,seem there would be more profit being able to get it for free or really cheap,and it would be helping the eco systems.

[@426superbee4]

Making people aware of what going on Just like your doing 👍👍

[@johnnyswag2802]

Just seeing the number of green crab in a 5x5 area Oregon & Washington has a problem. The public needs to be educated and catch all they can catch.

[@webmoss]

They’re great bait!

[@jamesdriscoll_tmp1515]

3 between the eyes 5 horns outside the eyes I bet surf perch would take crab meat bait Alternative to ghost shrimp for bait?

[@darrellcook8253]

Up around ocean cove ca the cabazone and ling cod would go nuts because the local crab population is crashing due to the kelp forests getting eaten by purple sea urchins. Everything is starving but I wouldn't want the exposure using them for bait unless they've been hard frozen. P S any artificial lure that looks like lobster or crab gets clobbered if you can find the fish. Invasive species scares me.

[@adventureanglingpnw1821]

I eat those things every time I catch them in my crab pots

[@user-vd1uz3dj8l]

What do they say, it's better to have lobster on your piano, than crabs on your organ.😊

[@andrewvo7898]

Put the difference on a sign like they do for sea turtles on the beach. Can add educational material to a state affiliated outdoors app. Texas for instance has Texas Outdoor Annual that provides statewide information for their hunting and fishing communities. Creating PSA's on something like that where tons of fisherman and outdoor enthusiasts congregate would be excellent. There's many ways to promote, it just depends on how Oregan's wardens perceive the threat. From what I understand, this is a problem that will need to be controlled soon. Those are a lot of females and those are a lot of eggs.

[@out4rvnge930]

from my understanding in oregon you are allowed up to 35 crab either sex a day. but in Washington state you cannot keep must release. lol how does that helps??

[@ShaheenGhiassy]

What’s the baseline for a species considered natural to a habitat? Thinking on a geologic timescale, any particular datum seems arbitrary at best

[@MaineGreenCrabs]

Green crabs were introduced to the America’s by ballast water from ships coming from Europe. They did not exist here prior to that. Many native species of marine organisms which co-evolved over millennia are knocked out by green crabs, for example here in Maine green crabs have decimated our native clam industry, our native crabs and lobster though they also eat clams just don’t multiply as fast, are not as aggressive and not as flexible in water salinity differences.

[@youdandee1]

There should be no limit on invasive species

[@dcriley65]

Time too start making green crab gumbo!

[@redsammy7789]

So you have the limit for greens at 35 because you don't want a bycatch by mistake of local crabs but your waters are being overrun by greens that eat your local crabs and shellfish? who is the genius that came up with that plan?

[@adcaptandumvulgus4252]

Crab people crab people...