10 billion snow crabs

[Shaun @ Tru6]

A year ago or so there were a few threads about the disappearance of millions of snow crabs. Paper on what happened to them just released it looks like.

Why 10 billion snow crabs starved to death in the Bering Sea

A team of marine biologists with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Alaska Fishery Science Center has solved the mystery of why approximately 10 billion snow crabs vanished from the Bering Sea back in 2018/2019—the water there was too warm for them.

In their study, reported in the journal Science, the group used data from previous studies on the way snow crabs respond to warmer temperatures to solve the mystery. Gordon Kruse, a member of the North Pacific Research Board, has published a Perspective piece in the same journal issue outlining the events that surrounded the population crash of the snow crabs and the work done by the team on this new effort to find out why.

Snow crabs are relatively small crabs, that, despite their name, are not white—they are red, like lobsters. They live on the ocean floor in shallow areas and have been consumed as a seafood delicacy for many years.

Alaskan fishermen (and scientists) first noticed a dramatic decline in their numbers back in 2021. Then, due to the pandemic, fishing and studying of the crabs was put on hiatus for a year. The full extent of the crab disappearance was only observed earlier in 2023—over 10 billion were missing. Upon discovering this alarming decline, a research team set to work to figure out what happened.

The team started by scouting nearby areas, hoping that the crabs had simply moved to another location, but no sign of them could be found.

Next, noting that the area had experienced a heat wave prior to, and during, the crab disappearance they turned to the results of a prior study that had found that when water temperatures increase, energy requirements for the crabs increase. The researchers found that if water temperatures increased by just 3°C, the caloric needs of the crabs doubled.

Records showed that during the heat wave, water temperatures had risen 3°C, which meant the crabs would have needed twice as much food to sustain themselves. The research team also found that just prior to the heat wave, the crab population had risen dramatically, meaning that there had been a large increase in competition for food. And that, the researchers conclude, led the crabs to starve to death.

[masraum]

Interesting. population boom along with caloric requirement increase, and BAM! Crabocalypse!

[Scott Douglas]

I'm not doubting the validity of the report, but, 10 billion is a lot of crabs.
Think in terms of volume per crab and it seems a little high to me.
And yes I've watched the show on tv about crabbing up there in the Bering Sea. If the population of crabs was that high why would they worry about the fishing of them. They don't take that many out of circulation each season compared to 10 billion.
Am I wrong in my thinking?

[Eric Hahl]

I was contemplating that number as well.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

Apparently that's from 2018 through 2022. Alaska TV station article: "More than 10 billion Bering Sea snow crabs disappeared in Alaska between the years 2018 and 2022, devastating a commercial fishing industry worth $200 million just last year. The population crash coincided with a marine heat wave that hit the Bering Sea. Now, fishermen and researchers are working to figure out what happened, and they think warmer ocean water could be to blame."

[Shaun @ Tru6]

I googled number of ants in the world, whole world and way smaller than crabs, but:

How Many Ants Are In The World? Think Millions Of Billions

Scientists estimate there are 20 quadrillion ants on Earth – that’s 20 million billion.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Shaun @ Tru6

I googled number of ants in the world, whole world and way smaller than crabs, but:

How Many Ants Are In The World? Think Millions Of Billions

Scientists estimate there are 20 quadrillion ants on Earth – that’s 20 million billion.

My first thought was "that's not a very good comparison" ants are tiny, crabs are much larger on average, even small ones. And there can be hundreds and possibly thousands of ants in one ant pile. But then I started thinking about the fact that the planet is 70+% ocean. So while I still think it's an unorthodox comparison, it's probably not as unbalanced as my initial reaction.

[Scott Douglas]

Yeah ants are tiny, I know because we've been battling them in our kitchen the last two days.
If these crabs are only being counted in the Bering Sea, I still think 10 billion is high, just from the volume side of things.

[Gogar]

Originally Posted by Scott Douglas

And yes I've watched the show on tv about crabbing up there in the Bering Sea. If the population of crabs was that high why would they worry about the fishing of them. They don't take that many out of circulation each season compared to 10 billion.
Am I wrong in my thinking?

I think those crabby shows are mostly for the King Crabs, not Snow Crab. Been a while since I watched one tho.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Scott Douglas

Yeah ants are tiny, I know because we've been battling them in our kitchen the last two days.

Demon WP (safe for indoor use as long as you follow guidelines), I've used it behind oven and fridge and under cabinets before. (sledgehammer)

Or Terro liquid ant killer drops (scalpel)

[911boost]

Man Bear Pig can tell you exactly why this is happening.

[Tobra]

Originally Posted by masraum

Interesting. population boom along with caloric requirement increase, and BAM! Crabocalypse!

happens in deer populations all the time

They get a population boom, and they let the hunters take more deer, so you don't have a bunch of them starving.

[MikeSid]

Originally Posted by Gogar

I think those crabby shows are mostly for the King Crabs, not Snow Crab. Been a while since I watched one tho.

They cover both the King season and the Snow season. Snow season is when the water is covered with ice on the surface. It's some of the worst possible conditions. And those fisherman pull up a tremendous amount of Snow Crabs. They aren't worth near what the Kings are worth...and for good reason. Snow Crab sucks. You'll find it at a buffet or some clip joint "crab shack." I find it almost flavorless and not worth the effort it takes to eat.

When the population of Dungeness crab is threatened, then I'll be concerned.

[stevej37]

That's a lotta crabs.

[Bob Kontak]

Yes it is a lotta crabs, Steve. (Cabby had Two Hearted Ale a couple weeks ago he wanted me to tell you. Had dinner with him and at least half his crew)

Mr Krabs is voiced by Clancey Brown.

[stevej37]

[QUOTE=Bob Kontak;12114515]Yes it is a lotta crabs, Steve. (Cabby had Two Hearted Ale a couple weeks ago he wanted me to tell you. Had dinner with him and at least half his crew)


Cool....Hopefully when he gets up to MI this fall for fishing of whatever, he can swing-by for a beer.
I have his favorites in the fridge waiting for him.....Dirty Bastard, Back Woods Bastard, and his all-time favorite....French Toast Bastard.

[fanaudical]

10 billion is a big number. I tried to visualize it this way:

- Assume 1 snow crab occupies 1 square yard (3 ft).

- Square root of 10 billion is 100,000

- 10 billion snow crabs at 1 square yard apiece fit onto a square measuring 300,000 ft per side.

- 300,000 ft is 56.82 miles

In relative ocean area, a square measuring ~57 miles per side doesn't seem so big. That's a lot of crabs...

[917_Langheck]

It must be remembered that these were not 10b adult crabs, but most likely mostly juvenile crabs due to the reproductive strategy that many small animals employ in which they produce an overabundance of offspring to offset the forces of selective attrition.

[stevej37]

^^^ I could handle juvenile crabs...not so sure of adult 10 lb crabs.
I only weigh 150 lbs....a couple of them would drag me down.

[917_Langheck]

I see a miscommunication on my part - 10b is short for 10 billion crabs, not 10lb. Not sure what they weigh. But if you have 10b of them I bet it's a lot.