4-24-12: A Perfect Storm for Blue Crabs

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Photo of juvenile blue crab from Chesapeake Bay Program.

The Chesapeake Bay had the murkiest water on record last year because of storms that flushed pollution and mud into the estuary. But, paradoxically, the Bay also experienced a 66 percent jump in the blue crab population last year--and the highest production of baby crabs on record--because regulations protected spawning female crabs from overfishing.  And some scientists suspect the storms might have helped to drive more crab larvae into the Bay from the Atlantic Ocean.