Dungeness Crab

"Facts about Dungeness Crab "Scientific name for Dungeness Crab is Cancer magister". Dungeness Crab other names are Metacarcinus magister, Common Edible Crab, Market Crab. Dungeness crab's scientific name is Metacarcinus magister and it is a variety of crab that belongs to the genus Metacarcinus of the Cancridae family. The Dungeness Crabs mostly live in water bottoms and eelgrass beds on the west coastline of North America and they are the admired seafood, valued for their sugary and tender flesh. The Dungeness Crab is named after Dungeness, which is a seaport in Washington. Generally, the Dungeness Crabs are an admired delicacy, and they are the most commercially significant crabs in the western states and the Pacific Northwest. They are largely found, five miles away from the north of Sequim and 15 miles away from the eastern parts of Port Angeles. Their range extends from the Aleutian Islands of Alaska to Point Conception in California. Recently, the Dungeness Crabs have been observed in the Atlantic Ocean, which is far from their recognized range, raising apprehension regarding their probable effects on the local flora and fauna.

Features of Dungeness Crab

An adult Dungeness crab usually grows to 7 3/4 inches (20 cm) across the carapace. The Dungeness Crabs have a broad, extensive, hard shell, which they must sporadically moult to develop, and this process is known as Ecdysis. The Dungeness Crab variety has five pairs of legs that are correspondingly armored, among which the leading pair have claws. The Dungeness Crab employs these claws both for tearing big food items separately and as for defending themselves from their predators. They use their smaller attachments to pass the food items into their mouth. Once the food items get into the stomach of the Dungeness Crab, they are further digested by the gastric mill, which is a set of tooth-like structures. Approximately, one-fourth of the weight of the Dungeness crab is meat. The flesh of the crab is considered a delicate taste and somewhat sweet flavor. Usually, the Dungeness Crabs are procured either cooked or live.

Diet of Dungeness Crab

The Dungeness crab mostly feeds on clams, other crustaceans and miniature fish.

Behavior of Dungeness Crab

The Dungeness crab is an efficient scavenger. These crabs can hide themselves entirely in the sand if they are threatened. Generally, adult female Dungeness Crabs molt between the months of May and August, and mating takes place immediately following the female crab has molted and before the fresh exoskeleton hardens. Male Dungeness Crabs are attracted to prospective mates by pheromones exist in the urine of female crabs. Upon finding an available female crab, the male crab starts a defensive pre-mating hug that will continue for several days. In this hug, the female crab is tucked under the male, leaning such that the abdomen of both male and female crabs touch and their heads look each other.

Reproduction of Dungeness Crab

Usually, mating takes place in Dungeness crab varieties only subsequent to the female crab has molted, and the female gestures her inclination to molt by urinating on or close to the antennae of the male crab. The female Dungeness Crab extrudes the eggs several months later from her body. However, the eggs continue attached under her stomach for three to five months, pending they hatch. Juvenile Dungeness Crabs are capable of swimming freely subsequent to hatch, and they go through five larval phases earlier than attaining maturity subsequent to two years or 10 moults.

The average lifespan of the Dungeness crab ranges from 8 years to 13 years.