Watch an army of blue land crabs march through a Miami suburb. And if you’re hungry ...
Unlike humans, blue land crabs aren’t social distancing.
The critters are out in full force, so be on the lookout for the quick-moving crawlers.
These sizable crabs, so named for their bluish-gray hue, burrow throughout the year and are forced out after a period of heavy rain. And we know about that right now.
A Cutler Bay resident caught a few of them in action in her backyard last week.
“Yep, wasn’t lying about these crabs,” she says off camera in a video provided to the Miami Herald and seen on @CutlerBaySocial’s Instagram page.
There they go, creeping through a building hallway, with others doing a brisk side skedaddle action in the grass with their hairy little legs.
If you see one, you may want to start thinking recipes. Land crabs are edible, at least the claw and leg meat are.
But you only have a few weeks left.
According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, as of July 1, it will be illegal to eat them or collect them or do anything else with them for that matter because it’s the crabs’ mating season.
“Blue land crabs shall only be harvested during the open season, which is from Nov. 1 of each year through June 30 of the following year,” says the FWC website. “No person shall harvest, attempt to harvest, or possess any blue land crab during the period beginning on July 1 and continuing through Oct. 31 of each year.”
Should you observe harvesters in your community next month call the FWC at 305-470-6863, Option 7. You may also report the violation through their website, at https://public.myfwc.com/LE/WildlifeAlert/
