2011 – A record crab harvest

According to Rich Childers of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, 2011 appears to be a record year for the amount of crabs harvested by recreational crabbers in Puget Sound. An estimated 2.1 million pounds of crabs were taken in the summer season from July 1 to Labor Day, with additional harvest coming during the fall and winter.

Lots of people enjoyed a high rate of catch this year, Childers said. “We are seeing an abundance of crab, phenomenally high in some of the Puget Sound marine areas,” he said. “We’re seeing the same thing with shrimp. Something in the environment is favoring the survival of Dungeness crabs from larvae to adult.”

Crab season will close in all areas on Dec. 31, and anyone with a winter catch record card must report their catch by Feb. 1 — even if no crab were caught.

Read more: http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2011/dec/28/record-year-likely-for-puget-sound-sport/#ixzz1hwlPWoYx