It's not surprising in years when you have a warm burst. |
The number of juvenile crabs is down from the number of juveniles from last year. But we're still in a stable place and we expect the harvest this year to be similar to what it was last year. The population has been stable over the last three or four years. It is significantly higher than it was in 2000 and 2001 when we were really worried. |
We're going to have another good influx of crabs. Last year, we had the largest influx of juvenile crabs that we've seen since 1997. ... We still have that elevated influx of young crabs. |
What this seems to tell us is, whatever the conditions were that allowed for a good recruitment index last year are persisting this year. |
You have to, in part, because any time you impose restrictions, it certainly can't hurt. |