News

A Billion Crabs Have Disappeared & Researchers Can’t Explain Why

Whew, chile! Those trash pots gon’ be looking some type of sad.  According to CBS News, there is now a limited supply of snow crabs and the mystery can’t be explained. 

For the first time in history, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game has canceled the winter snow crab season in Bering sea due to limited availability, resulting in low numbers.

It’s reported that nearly a billion have disappeared in two years, and no one seems to know why. 

An estimated one billion crabs have mysteriously disappeared in two years, state officials said. It marks a 90% drop in their population.

Ben Daly, a researcher with ADF&G, is investigating the situation and says that disease could be one reason to blame for the disappearance of the crabs.

Disease is one possibility,” Daly told CBS News.

Daly also says climate control could be a reason.

Environmental conditions are changing rapidly,” Daly said. “We’ve seen warm conditions in the Bering Sea the last couple of years, and we’re seeing a response in a cold adapted species, so it’s pretty obvious this is connected. It is a canary in a coal mine for other species that need cold water.”

Butter Shortage

According to the @nypost, “data from the United States Department of Agriculture, the amount of butter sitting in US storage facilities in August fell 10% month-over-month. However, it was down 22% compared to the same time a year ago.”

Midwest butter makers say that “spot loads of cream are very tight to unavailable” and “in the Northeast, retail butter demand is picking up, but tight inventories are causing some producers to regulate supplies across existing orders,” the report says.

The USDA report also stated that there were around 282 million pounds of butter in warehouses last month, but that’s down from 362 million pounds in 2021.

Roomies, y’all bought all the crabs and dipped them in butter?

LaJanee