Furry ‘mitten crabs’ are invading and ‘out-competing’ other marine life: experts
The a-claw-caplypse could soon be upon us.
Move over murder hornets. Invasive Chinese mitten crabs known for terrorizing anglers and German citizens have surfaced on Long Island, sparking fears of a crustacean invasion in New York waterways.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation detailed the so-called scourge in a Facebook post making a splash online.
Per the post, DEC staffers had discovered the mitten crabs in the North Fork’s Nissequogue River this past winter — news they deemed “anything but crabulous.”
More recently, the scruffy shell-bearers — named after the pom-pom like appendages adorning their claws — had been “found in the Hudson River and Long Island Sound.”
Interestingly, the species was first spotted in New York in 2007 but has been in the US since the 1980s, when it first established a stateside beachhead in the Bay Area.
The encroachment could spell an ecological disaster for the Empire State. Known for moving between brackish and marine waters, these estuarine critters have the potential to “disrupt local ecosystems by out-competing native marine life.”
These hard-shelled invaders — which are also wreaking havoc in Europe — have also been known to pilfer fishing bait, damage angling equipment and even increase the risk of deluges by hunkering down in river banks, compromising their integrity.
Fortunately, the critters are identifiable by their namesake “mittens,” although juveniles may lack these trademark tufts, per the DEC.
In that case, one should “look for a notch on the carapace between the eyes and four small lateral spines on each side of the carapace for additional identification markers in juvenile crabs,” per the post.
Once identified, the mitten crab should be removed from the environment, frozen and reported to the DEC.
“Make sure to take identifying photos and note your precise location,” they write. “Report your sighting to the Bureau of Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health by emailing: [email protected].”
Coincidentally, mitten crabs are considered a delicacy in China, namely the Shanghai area, where every autumn their eggs are used to season everything from eggs to soup dumplings like savory pumpkin spice.
However, it’s illegal to export them due to their aforementioned environmental impact.
