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Inshore Saltwater Fishing Discussion Discuss inshore fishing, tackle, and tactics here! |
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#1
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Tagged blue crabs
Hello-
I am a researcher with Nicholls State University. We are conducting a research project to better understand blue crab movements throughout coastal Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico. As part of this project, we are tagging mature female blue crabs throughout the Gulf. I am attaching a picture of a tagged crab. We are reaching out to the commercial and recreational fishing community to ask for your help. If you catch a tagged crab, please call us and report it. We are offering a reward for each tagged crab reported, and are asking for the following information: -Tag number -Date caught -Location caught (GPS if possible, if not a descriptive location is fine) -Was the crab carrying an egg mass/sponge? If so, what color was the egg mass (orange, brown, or black)? Tagged crabs can be reported at 1-800-624-2857 or www.crabtags.org. We are not trying to close the fishery or impose any additional regulations. We are simply trying to learn more about this valuable species. If you have any questions about the project, please do not hesitate to ask. We are also setting up a website with information about the project: http://www.nicholls.edu/bluecrabs. |
#2
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There's a pretty big crabbers group on Facebook. I'll post this there for you guys.
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#3
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Thank you!
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#4
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What happens when the crab sheds? You'll lose your tag and won't be with the crab anymore? Just wondering?
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#5
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Probably already had their final molt, so gonna breed and go die
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#6
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You guys may find this interesting:
http://www.nola.com/outdoors/index.s...b_facts.html#8 |
#7
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#8
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Lol I caught that one; no it's not a reflection of our population it's from all the heavy metals being absorbed. |
#9
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I'm sure they are only tagging females that have already molted (Females only molt once). Pretty cool. I will let my commercial friends know about this.
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#10
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Thank you. We appreciate the help.
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#11
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Thanks for all the comments. We are only tagging mature female blue crabs. After reaching maturity, females do not molt again, so we are not worried about losing tags.
Also, thank you for the suggestions for reaching a broader audience. I will post on 2coolfishing.com later today. |
#12
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Heavy metals? Doesn't sound good for us...
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk |
#13
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Nothing is good for us. |
#14
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Tasty, tasty delicious heavy metals
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#15
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and I was always told ALL crabs will molt and change shell about every 3 weeks as long as it is still growing.
always glad to learn something new gotta admit thou, I wouldn't tag and release a big female, they taste too good. but I love the idea of helping with the research, just wish this could be done for small crabs, I release hundreds of those each year. |
#16
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Also, if you catch one with a tag- we aren't asking you to release it. We just need you to call us with the tag info (or report it online). After that, you can pull the tag off and do whatever you want with the crab. |
#17
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and of course if I ever caught anything tagged I would absolutely turn it in along with whatever info I could give about it. I was speaking that if I caught one to put a tag on it and release it, in terms of my own greed and love for crabs, its hard to throw one back even though that's being greedy |
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#19
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when releasing crabs after tagging, is it best to spread them around or put them back right where they are caught?
I ask because, if caught in relatively confined areas, I wouldn't think they would go anywhere other then that area. also, to be honest, how far do crabs go in general? aren't they pretty much sedentary creatures? |
#20
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