Rare Crabs Caught

Two rare deep-water crabs caught near Shetland were recently handed in to the NAFC Marine Centre.

The crabs were caught by the local fishing vessel Venture (LK 641), skippered by Ivor Moffat, while she was fishing about 80 nautical miles west of Scalloway. They were identified by NAFC staff as Deep Sea Red Crabs (scientific name Chaceon affinis).

This is believed to be the first time that this species of crab has been found around Shetland, although they have previously been recorded from Faroe, Norway and Rockall and elsewhere in the North Atlantic. It also occurs in the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans.

The Venture's specimens were caught at a depth of about 220 metres, although these crabs are more usually found at much greater depths; typically between 400 and 2000 metres.

One of the crabs caught by the Vanture (pictured) was a male with a carapace width of about 150 mm, while the other was a slightly smaller female (135 mm). The male specimen has been preserved and added to NAFC's specimen collection (the female crab was not in good enough condition to preserve).