About the bloggers
Rona Kobell reports on the Chesapeake Bay, and in her seven years with The Sun, she's visited clam farms in Virginia, a peeler pen on Taylors Island and a small market on Smith Island that serves what many people consider the best crab cake in the world (to judge for yourself, head to the Drum Point Market in Tylerton). Rona enjoys hanging out with her husband and daughter.
Tom Pelton writes about the environment and has been at The Sun for 10 years. He lives in the city with his wife, two daughters, and an exotic ecosystem that involves a cat, hamsters, hermit crabs, cacti, running shoes, drums, guitar, violins, mild cheeses and strong opinions.
Listen in: Tom Pelton's "The Environment in Focus"
Tim Wheeler writes about growth and base-realignment for The Sun. A reporter and editor here since 1985, the West Virginia native has spent most of his adult life around the bay. He lives in Catonsville, one of Baltimore's older, walkable suburbs.
Recent Posts
Blogroll
Categories
- Environmental advocacy
- Local travel
- blackwater
- fisheries
- crabs
- oysters
- global warming
- growth/land use
- legislation
Blog updates
Also See
Chesapeake Bay Week
Maryland Public Television presents the annual Chesapeake Bay Week in an effort to foster discussion of issues surrounding the Chesapeake Bay.
> Bay & Environment news
> Maryland wildlife
> Maryland's invasive species
Maryland Public Television presents the annual Chesapeake Bay Week in an effort to foster discussion of issues surrounding the Chesapeake Bay.
> Bay & Environment news
> Maryland wildlife
> Maryland's invasive species
Comments
Great video and great article to go along with all the other info you've reported on crabs.
So... you're queen for a day/week or whatever... what would you do? You know as much as anyone does about crabs. We want to hear the Queen Rona solution.
Posted by: Warrior Bob Kramerior Bob Kramer | April 28, 2008 1:52 PM
Restricting the amount of female crabs that can be caught this year will not fix the dwindling crab population. Crabbers in Virginia should NOT be allowed to keep sponge crabs. They should be returned to the water so that they can have their babies. Afterall if they aren't allowed to reproduce the crabbing industry will completely fail. I find it morally illegal for anyone to keep one of those crabs. We need to clean up the Bay and restore the grasses. The government should concentrate on cleaning up the Bay - lets restrict the chemical companies, etc from dumping into the Bay. The taxpayers of the State of Maryland have already been hit so hard tax wise by the Governor, this will only impact the crabbers even harder. Not everyone makes as much money as the Governor - all he wants to do is pass it on to everyone else. Give him a hand and educate him on the real issues affecting the crab population - the disintegrating condition of the Bay due to the chemical companies and waste treatments plants dumping into the Bay. Maybe the Governor should tax them for a change!
Posted by: Ellen | April 28, 2008 2:14 PM
Hmm, do I get to wear a Burger King crown? We used to pass one around at my old newspaper and whomever's computer crashed the most at night got to wear it!
I don't know. I grew up in Pittsburgh, live in Baltimore and had never been crabbing until I started this job in 2004. People who have worked on the bay their whole lives have a ton at stake and I really don't, so it's hard for me to say definitively what should be done. (Although I do spend a lot of time on the Shore and among watermen, and with scientists, so I am not completely disconnected!)
This much I know: scientists say that there are not enough crabs in the bay, and the ones that are there are living and swimming in worse conditions than they had 10-15 years ago. Whatever the solution to increasing the crab population, it is probably going to have to include some pain for those who make their living harvesting.
Posted by: Rona Kobell | April 28, 2008 3:37 PM