# How do you take care of crabs? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 20, 2014, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518 "2014-04-20T01:36:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/21 "2014-04-20T16:41:40Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > I can have access to crabs whenever I’ve got the itch? I see what you did there? ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/22 "2014-04-20T16:46:05Z")
**How do you take care of crabs?** …Lather, Rinse, Repeat… ---
**Author:** ![Bozuit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/edb3f5/32.png) [@Bozuit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bozuit)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/23 "2014-04-20T17:13:42Z")
> [@GaryM](#): > > Question. > > Are all crabs eatable by humans? I’ve seen TV shows with what looks like millions of crabs crossing roads and being run over by cars and trucks. Could there be scooped up and eaten? Or are they of a variety that would taste bad? You’re probably thinking of the Christmas Island Red Crab on (unsurprisingly) Christmas Island where they migrate in large numbers. From what I understand, they’re edible but not generally eaten. Perhaps the locals feel a kind of protectiveness over the crabs as they’re “theirs”. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/24 "2014-04-20T17:47:57Z")
> [@Jeff\_Lichtman](#): > > Where do you live, **Superhal**? I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, and my local 99 Ranch has tanks full of dungeness crabs. Tanks where the crabs are raised, from their planktonic larval stage all the way to harvest size? I think that’s what the OP was asking. DIY crab farming. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/25 "2014-04-20T19:14:43Z")
I think the question to ask yourself is, if wild-caught crab is so expensive, then why aren’t they farmed? Call me crazy but I’m guessing the answer is, it is way, way too hard. All the seafood farming that is done that I am aware of is done in the sea itself (using net pens for fish or seeding platforms of some kind for sessile creatures like oysters). There is a reason for this – marine environments are very, very stable compared to freshwater environments, partly because they are so enormously big huge. Animals which live there are adapted to a very very stable environment, and will die even with modest fluctuations of temperature and chemistry. Trying to make an ocean environment in a swimming pool is ridiculous. You could with a lot of equipment probably keep a crab alive for a good while – just check out what is needed for a tropical marine tank for an idea of the cost and complexity – but breeding environments are way above that. Do you know anything about the life cycle of a crab? I think you should develop a craving for tilapia. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/26 "2014-04-20T19:49:52Z")
> [@GaryM](#): > > Question. > > Are all crabs eatable by humans? I’ve seen TV shows with what looks like millions of crabs crossing roads and being run over by cars and trucks. Could there be scooped up and eaten? Or are they of a variety that would taste bad? My friend asked me: are there any crabs that you can’t eat? Me: The ones that run really really fast? ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/27 "2014-04-20T20:31:13Z")
[Some of the larger crabs require special handling and cooking techniques](http://youtu.be/EzFLvR4TaOI). ---
**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2014, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/28 "2014-04-21T00:01:04Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > My friend asked me: are there any crabs that you can’t eat? > Me: The ones that run really really fast? Thank for the info. I don’t live anywhere near the sea anymore so it’s not an issue. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2014, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/29 "2014-04-21T00:03:15Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Tanks where the crabs are raised, from their planktonic larval stage all the way to harvest size? I think that’s what the OP was asking. DIY crab farming. He complained that his local markets didn’t have any crabs. I was responding to that. He’s interested in raising his own crabs because he can’t buy them, not because any markets are (or are not) raising them. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2014, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/30 "2014-04-21T00:26:01Z")
> [@Jeff\_Lichtman](#): > > He complained that his local markets didn’t have any crabs. I was responding to that. He’s interested in raising his own crabs because he can’t buy them, not because any markets are (or are not) raising them. Can’t we all just get along? Tell you what, next christmas let’s give each other crabs. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2014, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/31 "2014-04-21T05:26:46Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > Can’t we all just get along? Tell you what, next christmas let’s give each other crabs. How about Thanksgiving? In California crab season opens near the beginning of November, and many families have a tradition of eating crab on that holiday. ---
**Author:** ![Bozuit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/edb3f5/32.png) [@Bozuit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bozuit)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2014, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/32 "2014-04-21T12:24:38Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > I think the question to ask yourself is, if wild-caught crab is so expensive, then why aren’t they farmed? > > Call me crazy but I’m guessing the answer is, it is way, way too hard. > > All the seafood farming that is done that I am aware of is done in the sea itself (using net pens for fish or seeding platforms of some kind for sessile creatures like oysters). There is a reason for this – marine environments are very, very stable compared to freshwater environments, partly because they are so enormously big huge. Animals which live there are adapted to a very very stable environment, and will die even with modest fluctuations of temperature and chemistry. Trying to make an ocean environment in a swimming pool is ridiculous. You could with a lot of equipment probably keep a crab alive for a good while – just check out what is needed for a tropical marine tank for an idea of the cost and complexity – but breeding environments are way above that. Do you know anything about the life cycle of a crab? > > I think you should develop a craving for tilapia. I suspect this is part of it. Marine aquariums are pretty complicated to run compared to freshwater, and freshwater aquariums are still kind of a pain in the arse (for fish, at least). I expect crabs are quite tolerant (I’m guessing) but you might get crappy-tasting crabs or bad sizes with poor water quality. Perhaps you would need a very high density of crabs to make the business profitable, but more crabs means less oxygen, more waste, and perhaps more fighting. You might see a lot of crab-on-crab violence. Rearing ruminants sounds easier. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2014, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/33 "2014-04-21T13:30:02Z")
Shave off half your pubic hair. Douse the remaining hair with lighter fluid. Set it aflame. When the crabs run out of the fire, stab them with an ice pick. Well, that’s what they taught us in boot camp. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2014, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518/34 "2014-04-21T14:35:01Z")
> [@Bozuit](#): > > I suspect this is part of it. Marine aquariums are pretty complicated to run compared to freshwater, and freshwater aquariums are still kind of a pain in the arse (for fish, at least). I expect crabs are quite tolerant (I’m guessing) but you might get crappy-tasting crabs or bad sizes with poor water quality. Perhaps you would need a very high density of crabs to make the business profitable, but more crabs means less oxygen, more waste, and perhaps more fighting. You might see a lot of crab-on-crab violence. Rearing ruminants sounds easier. Both the University of Maryland and NCSU have had success raising crabs in freshwater farming environments. They cite a 20% survival rate if hatchery-raised crabs are purchased and allowed to grow to maturity. Looking around the net, it seems as though crab farming is something people are starting to experiment with. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-take-care-of-crabs/686518.md?page=1)