Evidence of a Blue Crab (Callinectes sapidus) Successfully Overwintering in a Southern Maine Salt Marsh

Laura C. Crane^1,*, Emily A. Burke², Benjamin C. Gutzler¹, and Jason S. Goldstein¹

¹Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve, Maine Coastal Ecology Center, 342 Laudholm Farm Road, Wells, ME 04090. ²University of New Hampshire, Department of Biological Sciences, 28 Academic Way, Durham, NH 03824. *Corresponding author.

Northeastern Naturalist, Volume 31, Issue 3 (2024): N11–N16

First published early online: 3 August 2024

Abstract
While observations of Callinectes sapidus (Blue Crab) in the Gulf of Maine (GoM) have been increasing, the ability of Blue Crabs to survive winter temperatures in GoM estuarine environments has remained uncertain. A tagged adult male Blue Crab was last detected by acoustic telemetry in November 2022 in a saltmarsh pool in Wells, ME, and was recaptured alive in the same pool in April 2023, confirming successful overwintering in the system. Water temperature in a nearby pool averaged 6.6 °C ± 3.2 SD from November–April, with only 15 days below 3 °C. This observation provides evidence that, at least in some years, Blue Crabs are capable of surviving GoM winters, providing opportunity for this species to persist in the GoM as temperatures warm.

Download Full-text pdf (Accessible only to subscribers. To subscribe click here.)