Opinion: The devastating Chesapeake blue crab collapse

The data documents a radical decline in crab numbers — the lowest ever recorded. This nadir was reached after crab numbers dropped by 32 percent in 2020 and an additional 30 percent in 2021. We are now at less than one-third of the population of 30 years ago. Juvenile crabs declined three years in a row and in five of the past six years, denoting a serious recruitment failure likely leading to even fewer crabs. The radical decline in male crabs to the lowest recorded level is of grave concern. But the linkage to overall crab abundance from low sperm availability has been overemphasized.