Crab traps, also known as crab pots, are a popular method used by recreational and commercial crabbers to catch delicious blue crabs and other crab species. But how exactly does a crab trap work to lure in crabs and keep them contained? In this comprehensive guide, we’ll take a close look at crab pot design and mechanics to fully understand how these ingenious contraptions function.
Anatomy of a Crab Trap
Crab traps are cube or rectangular shaped cages made of wire mesh or metal frames. They range in size based on the type of crab targeted, from small 1 x 1 x 1 ft recreational blue crab traps to giant 8 x 8 x 3 ft commercial King Crab pots.
Key elements of all crab trap designs include
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Outer Mesh or Frame – Creates the overall structure to contain crabs. Mesh size is specific to crab species.
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Entrance Tunnel(s) – Allow crabs in but not out due to inward sloping shape.
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Bait Box – Holds bait to attract crabs from a distance
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Escape Rings – Allow undersized crabs to exit while keeping legal catches
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Buoy – Floats on surface attached to rope to mark and retrieve pot.
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Interior Compartments – Different chambers to further trap crabs.
Let’s look at how each of these components works together to catch crabs.
How Entrance Tunnels Work
The entrance tunnels, also called leads, are the most important part of a crab trap. Their ingenious design allows crabs to easily enter the pot but not exit.
Crab trap entrances sit low on the pot close to the seafloor. They slope inward and upward into the pot’s interior. Crabs can easily crawl up the tunnel following the scent of bait.
However, the abrupt end of the tunnel prevents crabs from turning around and exiting. They cannot climb straight up out of the tunnels so remain contained in the trap.
Some pots feature multiple entrance tunnels to allow crabs to more easily locate and enter the pot. The inward sloping shape is universal across crab trap designs and critical to their functioning.
Bait Box Mechanics
Every crab trap contains a bait box or reservoir to hold and disperse bait. Bait simulates the smell of food sources crabs naturally seek out.
Common baits used include oily fish, chicken, clams, and squid. The strong scent travels through the water and leads crabs toward the traps from a distance.
Bait boxes have small openings to allow the scent to continually disperse for up to 1-2 days. But the openings are too small for crabs to access the bait from outside. This forces them to enter the trap to reach the bait.
Bait boxes are often placed near the entrance tunnels so crabs immediately crawl into the trap when investigating the scent. Regular bait replacement is key to keeping pots effective.
Escape Ring Size Matters
Escape rings or cull rings allow undersized crabs to exit the pot while keeping legal sized crabs inside. They are mandatory in most areas.
The rings are sized specifically for the minimum legal size of each crab species. For blue crabs, 2 5/16 inch escape rings allow sub-legal crabs under 5 inches to get out.
Escape rings prevent waste and allow undersized crabs to continue growing. They also increase efficiency for crabbers by releasing small catches.
Interior Compartments Add Confusion
Some crab pots add an additional layer of entrapment through interior compartments. These are extra chambers and passages beyond the initial entrance tunnels.
Interior compartments use the natural instinct of crabs to seek higher ground to trap them. Once a crab passes through an inner tunnel, it will try to surface but be unable to fit back through the opening.
This compounds the confinement of the sloped entrance tunnels. Crabs searching for an exit simply trap themselves deeper in the pot.
Buoys Float Traps
Crab trap buoys float on the surface to mark the location of pots below. They attach to ropes which connect to the trap.
Recreational crab buoys are often simple plastic or foam floats. Commercial buoys are larger and painted with identification numbers.
The floats allow crabbers to easily retrieve traps even in deep, murky water. They also warn boaters of submerged pots. Having a durable, visible buoy is essential when setting crab traps.
Proper Baiting Maximizes Catches
While the mechanics of a crab trap do most of the work, proper baiting takes catches to the next level.
Using fresh, oily bait provides the scent trail for crabs to hone in on. Placing bait near interior tunnels gets crabs heading into the trap immediately.
And packing bait boxes full provides lasting scent dispersion to draw in distant crabs. Changing bait every 1-2 days ensures pots remain attractive.
With the right bait, crab traps can passively catch for days at a time with no work required from crabbers.
Crab Trap Simplicity Is Genius
While crab traps may look like simple metal cages, their design intricately plays off crab instincts to passively catch.
Inward sloping tunnels, interior compartments, placement of bait, and size of escape rings all work together to trap crabs.
Understanding exactly how crab pots function allows crabbers to use them most effectively. With the right approach, these ingenious contraptions can catch crab after crab.
Next time you reel up a loaded crab trap, take a moment to appreciate the clever mechanics at play. The simplistic design has been catching crabs for generations.
Frequency of Entities:
Trap: 23
Crab: 22
Pot: 15
Bait: 11
Tunnel: 7
Entrance: 6
Compartment: 5
Interior: 5
Box: 4
Escape: 4
Ring: 4
Buoy: 3
Rope: 2
Cage: 2
Recreational: 2
Commercial: 2
Blue: 2
Species: 2
Water: 2
Scient: 2
Mesh: 1
Metal: 1
Frame: 1
Structure: 1
Contain: 1
Lead: 1
Slope: 1
Abrupt: 1
Climb: 1
Multiple: 1
Universal: 1
Reservoir: 1
Oily: 1
Fish: 1
Chicken: 1
Clam: 1
Squid: 1
Disperse: 1
Location: 1
Durable: 1
Visible: 1
Mechanics: 1
Simplistic: 1
Generations: 1
Deadliest Catch – How Crab Pots Work
How do you use a crab trap?
To use a crab trap, first prepare your gear and head out on the water. Suspend the bait inside the trap with the rope. In some cases, the trap may have an attached line, but in others, you’ll need to attach it yourself. Make sure to do this securely, preferably with a double knot.
How do you lure crabs into a fish trap?
To lure crabs into your trap, you’ll need to use an effective bait. Common bait choices include fish carcasses, chicken necks, or other meaty scraps. Place the bait in the bait box and secure it within the trap. Once your trap is baited, submerge it in the water where you believe crabs may be present.
What is the most important part of a crab trap?
The most important component of a crab trap is the bait box. If there’s something wrong with the bait, nothing in the trap works. Most crab pots come with a built-in bait box. Otherwise, recreational crabbers purchase one separately and attach it to the cage with zip ties.
How does a crab pot work?
The crab pot uses a system of nets inside a large metal cage made of wire or flat metal mesh that is reinforced with steel bars. The traps or pots are designed to allow crabs in but not let them out. This is achieved by careful positioning of the bait and “leads,” which are the sides of the entrance to the pot.