BALTIMORE, MD—The Chesapeake Bay blue crab population remained healthy in 2024, according to the results of a winter dredge survey released Wednesday, but the population is still low.

The survey, conducted by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, found 317 million blue crabs in the bay in 2024, compared to 323 million crabs in 2023. The number of spawning age female crabs decreased slightly from 152 million to 133 million, but is still well above the management threshold of 72.5 million crabs. Similarly, the number of adult male crabs decreased slightly from 55 million to 46 million.

The number of juvenile crabs, however, rose to 138 million, which is the highest number since 2011. The juvenile crab population has been below average for the past four years.

“An increase in juvenile recruitment is certainly welcome news, and the stock and population as a whole remains healthy,” said Maryland DNR Fishing and Boating Services Director Lynn Fegley. “However, the continued relatively low recruitment numbers warrant a closer look at our approach moving forward.”

The low population levels have prompted the creation of a new stock assessment of the blue crab population, which will begin this summer.

“We haven’t had a real evaluation of the assumptions we have in the model, and there are new analytical methods that could be applied to the data,” said Mandy Bromilow, DNR’s blue crab program manager.

The stock assessment will be completed and published in March 2026. The Chesapeake Bay Stock Assessment Committee, made up of representatives from the state and the fishing industry, will review the survey results and provide guidance for management of the blue crab population.

This article was written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a human editor.

Photo via Pixabay