Blue Crab

Blue Crab

Callinectes sapidus, are common throughout Florida. Blue crabs are popular in both recreational and commercial fisheries.

 

Some crabs swim. Most crabs, like stone crabs and spider crabs, walk or run across the bottom. However, crabs in the family Portunidae have specially modified back legs called swimmerettes. These paddle-shaped legs rotate at 20 to 40 revolutions per minute, allowing the crab to quickly swim through the water. One of the most well known crabs in the Portunidae family is the blue crab. In fact, the scientific name of the blue crab is Callinectes sapidus, which translates to "beautiful, savory swimmer."

 

Typically, the life span for a female blue crab is 1-2 years and a male is 1-3 years; however, in some tagging studies, crabs aged 5 to 8 years old were caught.