REPORT OF COMMISSIONERS OF INLAND FISHERIES. 69 



VIII. Preliminary Inquiry into the Natural History of the 

 Paddler Crab {Callinectes hastatus), with Remarks on 

 THE Soft-Shell Crab Industry in Rhode Island. 



Among the minor fishing industries in Rhode Isand, the impound- 

 ing of edible crabs until they have shed their shells, and the sup- 

 plying the market with soft-shell crabs, is of no little interest, and 

 judging from the enviable place which this delicious shell-fish holds 

 in the estimation of epicures, from the demand for it in the market, 

 and from the prices it brings, it would seem as though the industry 

 might be developed into one of considerable commercial importance. 

 A preliminary inquiry into the subject was made during the past 

 summer by Mr. E. W. Barnes, whose report is here given: 



The Paddler Crab (Callinectes hastatus) frequents sandy and 

 muddy shores in sheltered coves and in the mouths of brackish 

 streams from Massachusetts Bay to the Gulf of Mexico. It is known 

 by many local names, the most common in Narragansett Bay being 

 the "edible crab," the ''blue crab," the "paddler crab," or simply 

 "paddler." Among crustaceans of economic importance it ranks 

 perhaps next to the lobster. It is used as food, as bait, and even as 

 fertilizer. 



The Breeding Seasoyi. — The breeding season extends throughout the 

 summer, probabl}^ reaching its height in August. ' The mating of the 

 crabs takes place when the females are preparing to shed, a fact 

 which is taken advantage of by the crab fishermen. For when a 

 pai" of crabs are found together, one can be tolerably sure that the 

 female is a "shedder " (that is, is about to cast its shell). From his 

 place of hiding the male suddenly pounces upon the female and turns 

 her over. If she is not ready to shed, he leaves her, but if she is 

 is preparing to moult, the male carries her around with him until the 

 moulting process begins, then, from a short distance, he protects her 

 zealously from eels and from other crabs until the process is com- 

 pleted. The male attends the soft-shell female for about three days. 



