Population Decline
In 1980, at the peak of the king crab industry, Alaskan fisheries produced 200 million pounds of crab. However, by 1983 the total size of the catch had dropped to less than 10% of this size. Several theories for the precipitous drop in the crab population have been proposed including overfishing, warmer waters, and increased fish predation. The slow harvest forced many fishermen to diversify and catch snow crabs (such as bairdi (tanner) crab and snow crab) or cod. In recent years strict regulations have been enforced in order to responsibly manage the populations and allow them to rebound. The red and blue king crab population has stayed relatively low in almost all areas except Southeast Alaska since 1983, forcing many fishermen to concentrate on the golden king crab.
Read more about this topic: Alaskan King Crab Fishing
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