Category Archives: North Carolina Fisheries

North Carolina Fisheries

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Crayfish are eaten worldwide. Like other edible crustaceans, only a small portion of the crayfish is edible.

In most prepared dishes, such as soups, bisques and étouffées, only the tail portion is served. At crayfish boils or other meals where the entire body of the crayfish is presented, other portions may be eaten.

Claws of larger boiled specimens are often pulled apart to access the meat inside. Another favorite is to suck the head of the crayfish, as seasoning and flavor can collect in the fat of the boiled interior.

A common myth is that a crayfish with a straight tail died before it was boiled and is not safe to eat. In reality, crayfish that died before boiling can have curled tails as well as straight, as can those that were alive, and may very well be fine to eat.

Boiled crayfish which died before boiling are safe to eat if they were kept chilled before boiling and were not dead for a long time. A good way to determine safety in crayfish meat is whether it is mushy, usually an indication that it should be avoided.

Over 90% of the domestic crayfish production occurs in southern Louisiana and the Florida panhandle. In 2009, North Carolina had four active crayfish growers with 30 acres in production. Total harvest (tail meat) was 10,200 pounds with a farm gate value of $35,700 or $3.50 per pound.

Contributed by David Green

NORTH CAROLINA FISHERIES

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Sea scallops are found in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean from Newfoundland, Canada to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.  Sea scallops are very prolific.  A single scallop can generate up to 270 million eggs during its lifetime and live up to 20 years. 

Sea scallops spawn in late summer to fall, and larvae grow rapidly.  Between ages three and five years, sea scallops grow to 50 to 80 percent of their shell height and may quadruple their meat weight.  They can reach a maximum size of 6.7 inches in height.  Juvenile and adults sea scallops are a food source for cod, flounder, crabs, lobsters and sea stars.

Currently the Atlantic sea scallop resource is healthy and sustainable.  This fishery is extremely important to our country’s economy and is the largest wild scallop fishery in the world.  In 2009, U.S. fishermen harvested 58 million pounds of sea scallop meats worth over $382 million. North Carolina watermen participating in this fishery in 2009 harvested 382 thousand pounds of meat having a market value of over $2.3 million to commercial fishermen.

The New England Fishery Management Council manages the sea scallop resource in cooperation with the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council.

Atlantic sea and bay scallops are filter feeders, meaning they strain plankton and other food particles from water by passing it over a specialized structure that traps food.  Cilia move the food toward the mouth and into the digestive tract.

Bay scallops live up to 26 months and grow up to four inches.  Early in life, larvae attach to the leaves and stems of sea grass. As they mature, scallops sink to the bottom and continue to grow. Environmental factors such as temperature, rainfall, and sea grass health play a critical part in scallop abundance and yearly landings can vary a great deal.

According to the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries, the status of the North Carolina bay scallop fishery is “recovering.”  The resource was compromised by a red tide in 1987 and several hurricanes in the 1990s.  Sampling in areas south of Bogue Sound in 2009 showed stock improvements in some areas.  Environmental disturbances and predation by cownose rays may still limit the spawning stocks in the central coastal region.

Contributed by Barry Nash