by John Konrad (gCaptain) The Alaska Department of Fish and Game said this week that it had canceled the winter snow crab season in the Bering Sea for the first time ever. Authorities estimate that 90 percent of the population has been lost.
Biologists say that the warming of the waters of the Bering Sea in recent years could be a factor in the decline of the snow crab population and the current number of crabs is below the threshold for opening the fishery.
This year’s season, which typically opens on Oct. 15, will be canceled.
Miranda Westphal, a biologist with the Alaska’s fish and game department, said on Friday that the department was investigating why the crab population was declining.
“From 2018 to 2021, we lost about 90 percent…
