Blue crab season in Maryland is a beloved summertime tradition that draws people from near and far to the Chesapeake Bay region The beautiful blue crabs harvested from Maryland waters are an iconic part of the state’s culinary heritage and culture. As a Maryland native and seafood lover, I’m excited to share when and how to fully enjoy blue crab season in Maryland
Overview of Blue Crab Season in Maryland
The blue crab season in Maryland typically runs from April through December. However, there are some key times throughout the season when blue crabs are at their sweetest and meatiest.
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Early April to May – Blue crabs that stayed in Maryland waters during winter become available. Supply is limited.
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June – Migration of blue crabs up the Chesapeake Bay begins. Supply increases.
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July to August – Peak crab season! The most popular and traditional time for Maryland crab feasts.
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September to October – Fattest and largest blue crabs of the season Best prices
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November to December – End of the season as blue crabs migrate south for winter. Limited availability.
What Makes Maryland Blue Crabs So Special?
The Chesapeake Bay provides the ideal environment for blue crabs to thrive. Although found elsewhere, blue crabs hold a special significance in Maryland due to a few key factors:
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Up to 50% of the nation’s blue crab harvest comes from Maryland waters. It’s our pride and joy!
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Maryland blue crabs have a superior buttery, sweet taste thanks to their fat stores needed for winter hibernation.
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Constant tidal flow of the Chesapeake Bay delivers fresh nutrients that crabs feed on.
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Experienced Maryland crabbers know the secret spots and have perfected their harvesting methods over generations.
As a Marylander, I can assure you our blue crabs simply taste better than any others. The seasonal availability and local pride have made them an indispensable part of our regional cuisine.
How to Enjoy Blue Crab Season in Maryland
Here are some of my favorite ways to enjoy blue crab season from a Maryland native’s perspective:
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Host a crab feast in your backyard with family and friends! Pick crabs doused in Old Bay seasoning while sipping ice cold beer.
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Indulge in fried soft shell blue crabs when in season from May to September. The entire shell is edible and they’re divine!
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Visit a local crab shack for an authentic experience. Enjoy a crab cake sandwich and Maryland crab soup while taking in the atmosphere.
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Get out on the water by booking a crabbing excursion. Learn tips from an experienced waterman on how to catch and steam fresh crabs.
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Attend a crab festival or cook-off. Taste crab cakes, sample soups, and celebrate the community around our beloved blue crabs.
No matter how you choose to enjoy them, blue crabs straight from Maryland waters are a quintessential summer delicacy. Savor every sweet bite of this regional specialty during crab season!
When Does Blue Crab Season Start and End?
The Maryland blue crab season typically starts in April and runs through December. However, peak availability is during the summer months of June through August when the crabs are most plentiful.
Here is a more detailed breakdown of when you can expect blue crabs each month:
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April – The season kicks off, but supply is limited to crabs that overwintered locally. Not many crabs will be harvested yet.
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May – More crabs start migrating back into the Bay, increasing supply. This is also when soft shell crabs become available.
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June – The crab population continues to grow as more migrate into the Bay and tributaries. Great time for feasts!
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July-August – The most popular season for crab feasts! Supply is plentiful and crabs are meaty.
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September-October – The biggest and fattest crabs are caught. Supply decreases but quality is excellent.
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November-December – Colder weather sends crabs migrating south. Supply drops significantly but local crabs can still be found.
So for peak flavor and availability, target enjoying Maryland blue crabs between early summer and early fall. But devoted crabbers find ways to savor them throughout the season!
Where to Get the Best Maryland Blue Crabs
The sweetest and highest quality blue crabs come straight from Maryland waters, like those caught in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. Here are some of the best places to source authentic Maryland blue crabs:
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Local seafood markets – Many carry live or steamed crabs in season caught by watermen that morning.
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Crab shacks and restaurants – Look for ones certified by Maryland’s True Blue program which verifies crabs are local.
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Direct from a crabber – Some docks sell live or steamed crabs right off their boat.
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Community crab feasts – Fire departments and clubs often organize all-you-can-eat crab feasts.
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Your own crab pots – Recreational licenses allow you to catch a bushel per day during season.
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Crabbing excursions – Go out on the water and learn how to catch them yourself!
Ask where the crabs come from if it’s not clear. And check regulations on limits for keeping your catch if crabbing recreationally.
How to Tell if a Crab is From Maryland
Since blue crabs can be found all along the East Coast and Gulf states, how do you know if they are true Maryland crabs? Here are some tips:
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Check for the True Blue certification logo at restaurants and markets to verify Maryland origin.
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Look for a rich mustard yellow color to the crab’s fat. This indicates the signature Maryland buttery flavor.
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See if it’s an adult male Jimmy crab with a narrow apron flap shaped like the Washington Monument. More common in Maryland than female crabs.
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Ask your supplier for the harvest location. It should be Maryland waters if it’s the real deal.
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Taste the sweet, buttery flavor unique to Maryland blue crabs due to their regional habitat.
In the end, enjoying blue crabs is more about the experience of cracking and feasting on these delicious crustaceans. While we Marylanders remain loyal to our local crabs, blue crab lovers everywhere keep the summer tradition alive!
Blue Crab Season Regulations in Maryland
To maintain a sustainable blue crab population in Maryland waters, harvesting is regulated by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
Here are some key regulations:
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Recreational crabbing is open April 1 through December 15 annually.
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Daily bushel limits per person apply for keepers. Females and undersized crabs must be released.
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Specific gear restrictions apply, such as allowed number of crab pots.
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Special licenses are required for certain gear like crab pots or trotlines.
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Season length, harvest limits, and methods can vary for commercial crabbing.
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Area closures may be issued for sanctuaries or environmental protection.
Always check the latest regulations before heading out to enjoy crabbing season. Rules are in place to ensure we can enjoy this special tradition for generations to come.
How To Cook and Eat Maryland Blue Crabs
Now that you know when and where to get Maryland blue crabs, let’s discuss how to cook and eat these delicious crustaceans.
The traditional Maryland way to prepare blue crabs is by steaming or boiling them whole in heavily seasoned water. Old Bay seafood seasoning is a classic, but locals use crab specific seasoning like J.O. Spice.
Once cooked, break out small wooden mallets and knives to start “picking”—cracking open the crab shell to access the sweet meat inside. Crab picks and seafood crackers are also handy tools for getting out every little bit.
Popular ways to enjoy Maryland blue crab meat:
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Picked fresh from the shell and served with cocktail or vinegar sauce for dipping.
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In crab cakes, mixes with breadcrumbs and spices then fried to a golden brown.
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As crab dip served warm and cheesy with buttery crackers for scooping.
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In crab soup with veggies in a seasoned tomato or cream base.
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Stuffed back into the shells as crab imperial topped with cheese or sauce then baked.
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Rolled into soft flour tortillas with lime and spicy mayo as crab tacos.
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Stirred into creamy crab mac and cheese or buttery crab pasta.
Quick Facts Weight Appro ⅓ pound (at maturity) Length Up to 9 inches across the carapace/shell Lifespan 3 to 4 years Region New England/Mid-Atlantic, Southeast
The blue crab is a highly sought-after shellfish. Blue crabs live up and down the Atlantic Coast and in the Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico) and are caught by both commercial and recreational fishermen. Its scientific name—Callinectes sapidus—translated from Latin means beautiful savory swimmer.
Blue crabs are the most valuable fishery in the Chesapeake Bay. They are also major predators of benthic communities and are prey for many other fish species. Blue crabs are so treasured in the region that the blue crab is the Maryland state crustacean.
- Blue crab populations naturally are highly variable from year to year. In managing blue crab fisheries, resource managers look at overall trends rather than just the number of blue crabs in any given year.
- In the Chesapeake Bay, NOAA, the Virginia Marine Resources Commission, and Maryland Department of Natural Resources work together to conduct stock assessments. A benchmark stock assessment completed in 2011 generated reference points for the female blue crab population in the Bay. Resource managers use this number as a guide when they set regulations each year. An annual Blue Crab Advisory Report (PDF, 31 pages) developed collaboratively by the jurisdictions that manage Chesapeake Bay blue crabs helps decision makers, too.
- Each year, Maryland and Virginia conduct winter dredge surveys to track blue crab population numbers. It’s the only fisheries survey in the Chesapeake Bay that assesses population Bay-wide on an annual basis. The data are examined with respect to the reference points (from the benchmark stock assessment) to determine how the population is doing.
- The blue crab’s shell—called the “carapace”—is a blue to olive green.
- Shells can reach up to 9 inches across.
- Blue crab claws are bright blue, and mature females have red tips on their claws too.
- They have three pairs of walking legs and rear swimming legs that look like paddles.
- Blue crabs have an “apron” that covers their abdomen. Males’ aprons are thin; females’ are wider. In the Chesapeake Bay, people often refer to males’ aprons as looking like the Washington Monument while females’ aprons look like the Capitol dome.
- Blue crabs generally live for 3 or 4 years.
- They reach maturity in 12 to 18 months. Growth rates are affected by water temperature—they grow more quickly in warmer water. In the Gulf of America, crabs may reach maturity within a year. But in the Chesapeake Bay, it may take 18 months.
- Crabs molt—they shed their hard shell—as they grow. Because they lose hard parts during the molting process, it can be difficult to determine the age of a crab. Males molt multiple times during their lives. Females molt once, just before they are ready to mate.
- Blue crabs can grow to about 9 inches across (from tip to tip) their hard shell (carapace). However, they are usually harvested before they reach that size.
- While a blue crab usually weighs about ⅓ pound, the edible portion is much lower. The largest blue crab caught in the Chesapeake Bay weighed 1.1 pounds and was 10.72 inches (tip to tip across the carapace).
- Blue crabs eat almost anything, including clams, oysters, mussels, smaller crustaceans, freshly dead fish, plant and animal detritus—and smaller and soft-shelled blue crabs.
- Crabs are eaten by large fish, some fish-eating birds (like great blue herons), and sea turtles.
- To mate, a male crab cradles a female crab in a pose known as a “doubler” for a few days before the female’s terminal molt. They stay with her after mating until her shell hardens and to ensure another male doesn’t mate with her.
- In the Chesapeake Bay, blue crabs mate and spawn from spring to fall. Females migrate to the mouth of the Bay to spawn and can produce between 750,000 and 3,200,000 eggs per brood.
- Eggs hatch into larvae and go through a series of molts in high-salinity coastal waters and then migrate back into the Bay.
- The blue crab native range is along the Atlantic Coast of the Americas from Nova Scotia to Argentina, including the Gulf of America.
- Within the Chesapeake Bay, male crabs tend to prefer the fresher waters of Maryland and the Bay’s upper tributaries, while females like the saltier waters in the main part of the Bay and in Virginia, closer to the ocean.
- The blue crab uses multiple habitats in the Chesapeake Bay throughout its life. Blue crab habitats include underwater grasses and oyster reefs, and they range from shallow, brackish waters to deeper, saltier waters.
- Blue crab distribution varies with age, sex, and season. They tend to be abundant in shallow-water areas during warm weather. As the water temperature drops each year, they burrow into sediment in the deeper parts of the Bay for the winter.
- Blue crabs are bottom-dwellers that use beds of submerged aquatic grasses as sources of food, nursery habitat for young, and shelter during mating and molting.
- In the Chesapeake Bay, the blue crab fishery is managed by three jurisdictions:
- Maryland Department of Natural Resources
- Virginia Marine Resources Commission
- Potomac River Fisheries Commission
- To facilitate coordination between these three agencies, the Chesapeake Bay Program’s Sustainable Fisheries Goal Implementation Team brings scientists and resource managers together to talk through the latest science. The NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office chairs the Sustainable Fisheries Team.
- The “Fisheries GIT” created the Chesapeake Bay Stock Assessment Committee, which includes scientists and experts from management agencies and academic institutions around the Chesapeake.
- The Committee discusses the latest blue crab science, reviews and analyzes data for stock assessments, and develops the annual Blue Crab Advisory Report to help inform management decisions.
| Kingdom | Animalia | Phylum | Arthropoda | Class | Malacostraca | Order | Decapoda | Family | Portunidae | Genus | Callinectes | Species | sapidus |
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In Maryland, the recreational blue crab season runs from April 1 to December 15. Detailed regulations are set by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
In Virginia, recreational crabbers can catch crabs all year long using some methods. Crab pots, trotlines, and other gear are limited to certain times. Detailed regulations are set by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission.
On the Potomac River, the recreational blue crab season runs from April 1 to November 30. Detailed regulations are set by the Potomac River Fisheries Commission.
Male and female blue crabs have different life histories, and this affects the catch of blue crabs. For example, the Chesapeake Bay ranges from very fresh water in its headwaters to high salinity waters where the Bay’s mouth opens into the Atlantic Ocean. More female crabs are caught in the lower part of the Bay because they stay in higher-salinity water when they spawn. Males tend to stay in lower-salinity water.
This range of conditions and resulting crab leads the three jurisdictions that manage crabs in the Chesapeake Bay—the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Virginia Marine Resources Commission, and Potomac River Fisheries Commission—to have slightly different regulations. (NOAA does not set regulations for blue crab harvest in the Chesapeake Bay.) Representatives from all three jurisdictions participate in the Chesapeake Bay Program’s Sustainable Fisheries Goal Implementation Team (Fisheries GIT). Through that team, they discuss the latest blue crab research and harvest and population numbers together and then independently set regulation.
The majority of the blue crab catch in the Chesapeake Bay is commercial. Blue crabs are usually harvested with simple gear: pot, trotline, handline, dip net, or scrape. Crab abundance tends to be higher in areas with structured habitat, such as submerged aquatic vegetation. Most fishing gear used to catch crabs has little to no effect on habitat.
The blue crab fishery is managed by a number of different jurisdictions. In the Chesapeake Bay, blue crabs are managed directly by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, the Virginia Marine Resource Commission, and the Potomac River Fisheries Commission. Collaboration between these three jurisdictions is essential to sustainable blue crab management on a Bay-wide basis.
The Sustainable Fisheries Goal Implementation Team (Fisheries GIT) of the Chesapeake Bay Program is a forum for discussing fishery policy issues, including blue crab management. The Fisheries GIT includes federal agencies, state fisheries managers, watermen, and additional stakeholders in the Chesapeake Bay. The NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office chairs Fisheries GIT. The goal of the Fisheries GIT is to promote ecosystem-based fisheries management by providing sound science to support informed management decisions across all Bay jurisdictions.
The Chesapeake Bay Stock Assessment Committee, which is part of the Fisheries GIT, meets every year to review the results of annual Chesapeake Bay blue crab surveys and harvest data and to develop management advice. CBSACs annual Blue Crab Advisory Report provides recommendations to management jurisdictions as they develop regulations for the blue crab fishery.
Analysis of proposed Amendment 50 to the Fishery Management Plan for Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands…
Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay is seeing a concerning drop in blue crabs
FAQ
What month is best to buy blue crab?
The season is technically April through November, but the best crabs are caught in August and September.
What is the best month for Maryland blue crabs?
The peak season for Maryland Blue Crabs is from April to the end of November. However, the biggest and heaviest crabs are typically harvested during the fall months.
How much is blue crab in Maryland?
| Maryland Blue Crabs | Reg. | |
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| Large Female Hard Crabs Our large female crabs measure 6″ and up. | ½ Dozen | $49.99 |
| Dozen | $89.99 | |
| Half Bushel 2½ to 3 Dozen | $199.99 | |
| Bushel 5 to 6 Dozen | $374.99 |
What is the season for Chesapeake Bay blue crabs?
Season. April 1–Dec. 15.
What is blue crab season in Maryland?
Every summer, people from near and far flock to Maryland’s coast to get their fill of blue crabs. Here now, the how’s and where’s of crab season. Blue crab season in Maryland is a beloved summertime tradition. These beautiful swimmers from the Chesapeake Bay are an iconic part of Maryland’s culinary heritage and culture.
When does Chesapeake Bay blue crab season start?
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — The Chesapeake Bay blue crab season officially opens on April 1, 2025, ushering in a beloved Maryland tradition that runs through December 15. For recreational crabbers, this marks the start of prime time to harvest the iconic “beautiful swimmer,” Callinectes sapidus, known for its sweet meat and vibrant blue claws.
When is the best time to eat Maryland blue crabs?
The peak season for Maryland Blue Crabs is from April to the end of November. The best time for Maryland crabs is during the fall months (September to mid-November), which is when the biggest, heaviest crabs are typically harvested. In December, as the weather cools down, crabs from the Chesapeake Bay head towards the warmer waters.
When do blue crabs go out of season?
In December, as the weather cools down, crabs from the Chesapeake Bay head towards the warmer waters. During this “off-season,” we offer either flash-frozen Maryland Blue Crabs or “Maryland-style” Blue Crabs from North Carolina and Louisiana.
Do blue crabs go crabbing in Virginia in May?
Remember that these are averages! If you go crabbing in Virginia in May, don’t expect to come home with a 7 inch blue crab. You should know that crabs start off small in the beginning of the season and get larger as it goes on. During the winter, blue crabs burrow in the mud and sit dormant while the water is cold.
When is crab season 2025 in Maryland?
The Maryland DNR sets strict guidelines for non-commercial crabbers to protect the blue crab population and other species, like the diamondback terrapin. Here’s what you need to know for 2025: Season Dates and Times: April 1 to December 15 in the Chesapeake Bay and its tidal tributaries.