Crab

Crabs are members of the Phylum Arthropoda; Subphylum Crustacea; Class Malacostraca; Subclass Eucarida; and Order Decapoda. Crabs are further subdivided into two major Infraorders, the Brachyura and Anomura (Kozloff 1996), which are distinguished by the former having four pairs of walking legs and the latter having three.

Crab species assessed at the Pacific Biological Station include:

• Dungeness Crab (Cancer magister)
• Tanner Crab
  • Chionoecetes tanneri
  • Chionoecetes bairdi

Dungeness Crab

Dungeness crabs are the most important crab species harvested in British Columbia and the second most valuable invertebrate fishery on the west coast of Canada, reported landings exceeded $21 million in 1998. These crabs are exploited by commercial, aboriginal, and recreational fishers coast-wide. Major crab fishing areas in British Columbia include the Fraser River delta, the Gulf Islands, inside waters of the Strait of Georgia and the west coast of Vancouver Island off Tofino.

Stock Assessment

Dungeness Crab stocks are managed by a minimum size limit and male only harvest which conserves the reproductive potential of crab stocks. As a result, population assessments are not required prior to fishing as with many other species and quotas are not set.

Dungeness Crab stock assessment focuses on the collection of biological data from crab stocks coastwide which are used to ensure that fishing practices do not inadvertently kill or injure female and undersize crabs that the minimum size of harvest is designed to protect. Activities include; determining when crabs moult in different areas in order to avoid fishing them when they are soft and easily damaged; determining injury rates and likelihood of injury with shell hardness; determining the effects soak time on the retention of undersize and female crabs in traps; determining the ratio of crabs caught to crabs discarded as a measure fishery productivity; determining movement patterns and likelihood of capture with size; advising on the use of various trap types, escape rings for undersize crabs and mechanisms to prevent traps from fishing if they are lost; and determining the availability of crabs for harvest by First Nations and recreational users.

Biological data is usually obtained from trap caught crabs collected aboard research and commercial vessels, however other methods such as trawling and direct observation via underwater cameras are also used.

Looking for more information?

For more information about dungeness crabs please see the Stock Status Report (*.pdf file).

For more information about ongoing research on the Dungeness Crab at the Pacific Biological Station, please contact:
Antan Phillips

Dungeness crab program staff

Antan Phillips
250-756-7110
Antan.Phillips@dfo-mpo.gc.ca  

Graham Gillespie
250-756-7215
Graham.Gillespie@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

Tanner Crab (C. tanneri)

The deep water grooved tanner crab (Chionoecetes tanneri) is one of several species being considered for new fisheries off the coast of British Columbia. This proposal has been following the phased approach for new and developing fisheries. The program has been inactive since 2003 when the last experimental fishery took place. The fishery was not economically viable for the Tanner Crab Joint Venture Fishermen’s Association to continue.

Looking for more information?

For more information about Chionoecetes tanneri please view the publications page.

For more information about ongoing research on the tanner crab at the Pacific Biological Station, please contact:

Ken Fong
250-756-7368
Ken.Fong@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

Antan Phillips
250-756-7110
Antan.Phillips@dfo-mpo.gc.ca  

Graham Gillespie
250-756-7215
Graham.Gillespie@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

Tanner Crab (C. bairdi)

Chionoecetes bairdi or inshore Tanner crab is one species that is considered to have potential for a new commercial fishery. This consideration follows a phased approach to new and developing fisheries to ensure that any eventual commercial activity is biologically sustainable. The Wuikinuxv (Oweekeno) First Nation in collaboration with DFO explored the opportunity of developing a fishery for inshore Tanner crab throughout the Rivers Inlet system.

For information about C. bairdi please see the documents below or view the publications page.

Fong, K.H. and J.S. Dunham. 2005. A progress report on the development of a new fishery for inshore Tanner crabs (Chionoecetes bairdi Rathbun, 1924) in Rivers Inlet, British Columbia. PSARC Working Paper. I2005-06: 90p.

G. Krause, G. Workman, A. Phillips. 2001. A Phase '0' Review of the Biology and Fisheries of the Tanner Crab (Chionoecetes bairdi). (*.pdf file)

For more information about ongoing research on the tanner crab at the Pacific Biological Station, please contact:

Ken Fong
250-756-7368
Ken.Fong@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

Jason Dunham
250-729-8363
Jason.DunhamJ@dfo-mpo.gc.ca  

Antan Phillips
250-756-7110
Antan.Phillips@dfo-mpo.gc.ca