Tuna Crabs

queenfish · Jul-04-2009, 01:38 PM

Just a little tidbit that I thought was interesting. We were fishing for Reds near the Coronados yesterday. Lots of bait on the meter, Krill being devoured on the surface by birds and macs. Blue whale cruises by.
Some of the fish we caught (Reds, Coppers etc.) coughed up fresh dead squid when they hit the deck and a couple of them coughed up Tuna Crabs.

Not little stone crabs, but honest to goodness Red Tuna Crabs.
Maybe the exotics are near.

**Ali** · Jul-04-2009, 01:53 PM

crazy. haven't seen those things in a few years.

master b8r · Jul-05-2009, 01:09 AM

yah, it's been a while since those things have been around...i remember a few years ago, catching a bunch of yellows and checking their guts and found buttloads of those things in there...

mutu0069 · Jul-05-2009, 01:12 AM

Man, I remember a few years back we were at cat and they were everywhere! we started scooping them up and every freakin one we threw out got chomped by a nice calico!

Hobbyhorse · Jul-05-2009, 01:20 AM

More and more signs of an El Nino coming up... maybe this means Opah in bigger numbers as well?

Crusty Rod · Jul-05-2009, 07:29 AM

Call in the guys from Dutch harbor AK!!!, hey whatever gets the tuna biting, Tuna crabs, fish dances, we need a good tuna catching season.

Foss · Jul-05-2009, 09:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by queenfish

Just a little tidbit that I thought was interesting. We were fishing for Reds near the Coronados yesterday. Lots of bait on the meter, Krill being devoured on the surface by birds and macs. Blue whale cruises by.
Some of the fish we caught (Reds, Coppers etc.) coughed up fresh dead squid when they hit the deck and a couple of them coughed up Tuna Crabs.

Not little stone crabs, but honest to goodness Red Tuna Crabs.
Maybe the exotics are near.

Cool observations Mark. Nice seeing you at the MLPA meeting after work the other day.

Blackfish · Jul-06-2009, 10:48 AM

Pelagic tuna crabs (Pleuroncodes planipes) are normally found off the Pacific coast of Baja. When they are found in California it is a sure sign that southern water has moved north. They are one to three inches in length, and swim backward by flipping their tails and streamlining their legs. At times they settle to the ocean bottom and hide in holes in the sand. At other times they drift and swim with currents, moving up and down the water column in search of planktonic bits of food that they capture with appendage hairs. They are known to be a food source for the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus). They can congegrate in vast swarms, thick enough to color the ocean surface red and washing ashore in great drifts to be mistaken for baby lobsters. Such swarms are often in association with El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events. Tuna crabs are also a source of food for fish, especially yellowtail and various tuna species, and for rays and pinnipeds as well. At times marine birds gorge so heavily on tuna crabs that they cannot fly!

desertbud · Jul-06-2009, 11:23 AM

Anything good at the Islands that day?

tunatime1985 · Jul-06-2009, 12:18 PM

wow

Burndog · Jul-06-2009, 01:55 PM

Thanks for the details Mike...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blackfish

Pelagic tuna crabs (Pleuroncodes planipes) are normally found off the Pacific coast of Baja. When they are found in California it is a sure sign that southern water has moved north. They are one to three inches in length, and swim backward by flipping their tails and streamlining their legs. At times they settle to the ocean bottom and hide in holes in the sand. At other times they drift and swim with currents, moving up and down the water column in search of planktonic bits of food that they capture with appendage hairs. They are known to be a food source for the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus). They can congegrate in vast swarms, thick enough to color the ocean surface red and washing ashore in great drifts to be mistaken for baby lobsters. Such swarms are often in association with El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events. Tuna crabs are also a source of food for fish, especially yellowtail and various tuna species, and for rays and pinnipeds as well. At times marine birds gorge so heavily on tuna crabs that they cannot fly!

Motofisher · Jul-06-2009, 06:43 PM

I remember a couple a years ago they showed up. The yellowtail were everywhere on them. They were not interested in dines or live bait. They would just swim right by filling up on the carbs.