MD Blue Crab Population Study 2019 Results Are In

ANNAPOLIS, MD — The blue crab population in Maryland's portion of Chesapeake Bay is growing by double digits, good news for fishermen, diners and the tourism industry. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources released the results of its 2019 Blue Crab Winter Dredge Survey, showing the blue crab population is "healthy and thriving."

Every year, from December to March, marine biologists dredge 1,500 sites throughout Chesapeake Bay, measuring the populations. Here's what they came up with. The survey showed that the Bay-wide blue crab population increased 60 percent from last year, to an estimated total population of 594 million crabs. The rise in adult abundance of blue crabs was higher than anticipated given a poor influx of juveniles in 2017 and 2018. This is a sign that blue crab management has been successful at allowing more crabs to reach the spawning stock, state officials said.

The adult female population climbed to 190 million, a 29 percent gain from 2018 and the adult male population increased to 80 million or a 38 percent increase. Mild winter temperatures also helped increase both juvenile and adult blue crab overwintering survival rates, according to a news release.

“The blue crab population is both healthy and thriving, which is great news for the entire Bay,” said Maryland Department of Natural Resources Secretary Jeannie Haddaway-Riccio in a press release. “Under Governor Hogan’s leadership, these results are a clear indication of the effectiveness of our management plan for blue crabs, an iconic species that is essential to Maryland’s economy and the Bay’s ecosystem.”

Ahead of Monday’s announcement, Gov. Hogan and First Lady Yumi Hogan went to Mike’s Crab House in Riva to dine on their first crabs of the season.

“We are proud of our administration’s strong record of skilled environmental stewardship, which begins with safeguarding the Chesapeake Bay,” said Gov. Hogan in a statement. “Today’s results are further proof and a shining example that our efforts to protect Maryland's blue crab population, while ensuring the health of our state’s most important natural asset, have been successful.”

The juvenile crab population also increased from 167 million in 2018 to 324 million this year. Since blue crabs spend the first part of their lives in the Atlantic Ocean they rely heavily on favorable currents, temperatures and winds to bring them into the Chesapeake Bay where they grow and mature.

“The female abundance of blue crabs is close to our target and the juvenile population is above average,” said Natural Resources Fisheries Monitoring and Assessment Director Michael Luisi in a news release. “We expect a lot of variability in the blue crab population, and taking a conservative approach offers stability for the fisheries in the face of swings in abundance.”

In 2018, baywide harvest was 55 million pounds, which is similar to the 54 million pounds harvested in 2017.

For more information on the survey, click here.