Profile updated on 27 September 2016
SCIENTIFIC NAME(s)
Callinectes sapidus
SPECIES NAME(s)
Blue crab
Blue crab Callinectes sapidus has a broad latitudinal distribution, from Nova Scotia, to northern Argentina, including Bermuda and the Antilles. In the Gulf of Mexico, two stocks are considered to exist; an NE Gulf of Mexico stock along Florida state coast up to the Apalachee Bay, and a “NW Gulf of Mexico stock” occurring from Apalachicola Bay, Florida, to the west of the gulf, based on genetic and phylogenetic analysis (GDAR, 2013). However, the connection between the western stock and the southern distribution in Mexican waters is uncertain (GDAR, 2013). Therefore, Blue crab fisheries in Mexican waters may be part of the western stock.
Image: Wendy Kaveney
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Management Quality:
≥ 6
≥ 6 to ≥ 8
≥ 6 to ≥ 8