The Council of Agriculture’s ban on the capture or sale of female crabs carrying fertilized eggs went into effect yesterday, and is to last until the end of the year, covering their peak breeding season.
The amendment to the Regulations on Capturing Crabs in Littoral and Coastal Areas (沿近海捕撈蟳蟹類漁獲管制措施規定) was first announced on July 6 by the council in response to a proposal National Chengchi University professor Cheng Tung-liao (鄭同僚) submitted to the National Development Council’s Public Policy Network Participation Platform in December last year.
Crabs carry their fertilized eggs on their lower abdomens, and their meat is dry and tasteless, as nutrition is provided to the eggs, he said.
Photo courtesy of Cheng Tung-liao
While egg-bearing crabs can be seen year-round because crabs can reproduce multiple times annually, the amendment extended the Aug. 16 to Nov. 15 prohibition period in the original act to cover the entire peak breeding season from August to December.
Those who contravene the regulation face a fine of NT$30,000 to NT$150,000 under the Fisheries Act (漁業法).
If the amended act is thoroughly enforced, the Fisheries Research Institute estimated that 60 percent of egg-bearing crabs could produce offspring safely, which would contribute greatly to ecological conservation efforts in the waters around Taiwan, Cheng said yesterday.
Female crabs can lay at least 100,000 eggs at a time, but few of the hatched baby crabs survive to become adults, with many becoming food for other creatures, he said.
Anyone who sees egg-bearing crabs in markets or restaurants should report the situation to fishery or agriculture authorities, or the police or prosecutors, he said.
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