Harvesting Dungeness Crabs Homer Alaska, Cancer magister
The Dungeness crab is a species of crab that inhabits eelgrass beds and water bottoms from the Aleutian Islands in Alaska to Santa Cruz, California. Dungeness crabs have a wide, long, hard shell which they must periodically molt in order to grow; this process is called ecdysis. They have five pairs of legs, which are similarly armored, the foremost pair of which ends in claws which the crab uses both as defense and to tear apart large food items. The crab uses its smaller appendages to pass the food particles into its mouth. Once inside the crab's stomach, food is further digested by the "gastric mill", a collection of tooth-like structures. Cancer magister prefers to eat clams, other crustaceans and small fish, but is also an effective scavenger. Dungeness crabs can also bury themselves completely in the sand if threatened.
Size: 5328px × 3615px
Photo credit: © Phil Degginger / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: alaska, business, cancer, catch, crab, crabs, dungeness, family, fisherman, fishermen, fishing, fresh, harvesting, homer, magister, metacarcinus, seafood
