Characterization and fishery development potential of Galveston Bay, Texas, stone crab (Menippe adina ) stocks

Seasonal abundance, spatial and temporal distribution, and size composition of stone crab (Menippe adina ) stocks in lower Galveston Bay, Texas, were characterized by trapping from January through December 1985. Stone crab catch per unit effort was highest throughout late summer and fall; catch rates were greatest in deep-water (>8.1 m) channels with beds of packed sand. Male:female sex ratio was 1.0:2.5; females exhibited a slightly larger mean carapace width (91 mm, versus 87 mm for males). Males possessed proportionally larger claws and began producing claws of harvestable size ( greater than or equal to 70 mm propodus length) at a smaller average carapace width (90 mm) than did females (95 mm). The right propodus was the crusher claw on 73% of the crabs sampled. Nearly 84% of the crabs sampled possessed both claws, and 53% of all crabs yielded at least one harvestable claw. The 22,350 kg of stone crab claws caught by commercial crabbers in Galveston Bay during 1985-86 represented 36% of the entire Texas stone crab harvest. The potential for developing a directed stone crab fishery in Texas seems poor because of a lack of information on indigenous stocks, absence of in-state markets, and insufficient support from industry and government