BIOLOGY AND NATURAL HISTORY 



215 



TABLE 7 



Catch Frequencies of Hard Crabs Taken by Trot-Line in North Carolina and 



in Chesapeake Bay at Various Periods in 1942 and 1944. (In Percent of Total 



Number of Man-Days). Catch in North Carolina from February Through 



April Taken in Core Sound; from June Through September in Lower 



Pamlico River. Catch in Chesapeake Bay from April Through 



September Taken in Hampton Roads Area * 



* Catch during June-September in North Carolina and during April-September in Chesapeake 

 Bay based on a single fisherman; catch during February-April in North Carolina based on a 

 variable number of fishermen. 



feeding by crabs. Incidentally, the crab stock in the region is composed 

 largely of adult females that are taken and marketed in all breeding stages. 

 It is evident that differences both in the environment and the economic 

 requirements of the fishery in the two regions make it impossible to compare 

 with accuracy the natural abundance of blue crabs in North Carolina and 

 in Chesapeake Bay. The distribution of the catch frequencies of crabs taken 

 by the same unit of fishing effort in the two areas suggests, however, that 

 the actual density of the stock of crabs may not differ widely in areas with 

 somewhat comparable environmental conditions. 



