Georgia's blue crab is on the rebound

SAVANNAH - Rain, diluting the salty water in estuaries and sounds along Georgia's coastline, may be the reason why Georgia's blue crab population is on the rebound, researchers said.

The diluted water may have kept the crab parasite known as Hematodinium perezi from plaguing Georgia's crabs as the parasites have done during Georgia's drought years.

Catches recorded by state and commercial boats are up.

But during the drought years, the whip-tailed parasite flourished in extra salty water. The parasite proliferates in a crab's blood, eventually consuming its blood cells. Heavily infected crabs become lethargic, so much so that some don't even bother to try to escape when taken from traps.

Typical yearly catches for the state plummeted from an average of 5.9 million pounds of crabs to a record low last year of 1.9 million pounds.

"We know the disease is there. We know the crabs die from the disease. (Hematodinium) was very prevalent in our study areas. We've come to the conclusion this made major contributions to the decrease," said Dick Lee, professor of oceanography at Skidaway Institute of Oceanography.

Crabbers also believed that pollution, increasing development and competition from recreational crabbers also lowered their catch.

But the rain may have helped. The crabs have repopulated faster than Lee expected. And he's heard of crabs as far as 65 miles offshore.

"There's a load of little crabs," he said. "It's going to be a great crop next year."

The state Department of Natural Resources still remains cautious and has called for an extension of a 3-year ban on egg-bearing or sponge crabs set to expire in July. The governor has approved the extension but the legislature must approve it.