In some areas, mussels and starfish had disappeared completely. When researchers surveyed the fjords of the Varanger region around Bugøynes in 2012, they found that the abundance of many seafloor species had dramatically declined since the crab’s arrival. The crabs have few natural predators in cold Arctic waters. The king crab earned its spot at the top of the marine monarchy for a reason: it crawls along the seafloor eating starfish, worms, sea cucumbers and molluscs. Then they return to shore to sell their catch. Every few days, fishermen check herring- and mackerel-baited pots that can trap up to 50 large crabs at a time. How many crabs they can catch is regulated by a quota set by the government each year to ensure the future of the commercial fishery. The fishermen of Varangerfjord place pots year-round, with peak season running from October to January. Soon they’ll be transported 1,100 miles by truck to Oslo, where they will be loaded on to cargo planes and shipped live around the world – to Dubai, Los Angeles, Kuala Lumpur. Inside the Norway King Crab facility on the docks of Bugøynes, 3,000 red king crabs float in 30 giant round tanks. They ultimately can’t push for total eradication if king crab is to continue buoying northern coastal communities – but at what cost? Bonanza comes with a catch
That puts government regulators in a tough spot, between securing the long-term economic viability of the crab fishery and limiting its takeover of native species and traditional fisheries. The crabs are continuing to expand their territory, and could soon arrive in the Lofoten Islands, one of the world’s largest seasonal cod fisheries.ĭrying cod in the Lofoten Islands, where a crab invasion could threaten catches. Following the crab’s cross-border move, native seafloor species have rapidly declined.
The Norwegian government recently announced it was increasing the male crab quota by 18% to 1,810 tonnes in 2021.īut while the crabs have largely been good news for fishermen and the economy, the same can’t be said for other species. The fishermen of Bugøynes can sell their catch for more than 210 Norwegian kroner ($24) a kilo to producers, who distribute the crustaceans to the world’s finest restaurants, hotels and casinos. The price of king crab has tripled in just over a decade, according to the Norwegian Seafood Council. The monstrous crabs, which now number in the millions, have become the centre of a huge industry: this October alone, Norway exported nearly $9m (£6.7m) worth of king crab. When the crabs came here, it put life in our small places Gentjan Kryeziu, Norway King Crab
Today the red king crab is largely credited with rescuing the fishing villages of the north during a time when cod was sparse. But when the fishermen learned of the million-dollar Alaskan king crab fishery, they realised the crab could be more boom than bust. The crabs became entangled in gillnets and longlines, removing bait and causing damage that allowed coveted fish species to escape. The invasion of “Stalin’s red army” was initially seen as a disaster.
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