Crabs and Shellfish More than any other animal, the blue crab , or Callinectes sapidus , symbolizes the life and culture of the Chesapeake Bay region. The beautifully colored, aggressive crab supports vital commercial and recreational fisheries. Commercial harvests in a good year can yield close to 100 million pounds of crab annually.
Crabs belong to a group of animals called crustaceans, which includes shrimp, crayfish and lobsters.
Crabs inhabit a wide range of Bay waters, from the upper Bay near freshwater tributaries down to the saltier waters at the mouth of the Bay. The oyster is an international delicacy, but since the late 1800s, overharvesting, parasites such as Dermo and MSX, and pollution have severely depleted oysters stocks in the Bay, which is one of the country's foremost oyster producers. Another important mollusk that comes from the Bay is the hard clam , found primarily in the higher salinity waters of the Bay. Their spawning cycles are greatly affected by water temperatures and the availability of food. Crabs and shellfish share habitat and consequently respond to similar fluctuations in its quality.