Caught on Camera: Inside the Relentless Feeding Habits of Blue and Green Crabs
Tracking what decapods eat provides essential indicators of marine food web resilience. As ocean temperatures rise and non-native crabs migrate into northern waters, their predatory choices reverberate across commercial fisheries and shoreline ecosystems. Fisheries managers now rely on real-time stomach isotope tracking and underwater monitoring to protect soft-shell clam beds and critical eelgrass nurseries from overconsumption. Understanding the balance between active hunting, detritus grazing, and cannibalism remains the cornerstone of modern coastal conservation.
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what do crabs eat