Live mudcrabs

[freefish]

Hi All, What's the best way to keep mudcrabs alive for a couple of days. When I was a kid the pro the old man fished with used to pack them into sacks with mangrove leaves to bring into the market. Anyone know of some way of keeping them like this. REgards Bill

[rick k]

have been told that pruning mangroves for any purpose without a permit is a problem.

They stay alive when tied in a broccoli box for a few days in the company of a boxful of their compadres. Not too hot, not too cold, and not too dry

[clutter]

Tie them up and keep them in a wet potato sack (hessian). Failing that, just keep them in a cool place.

Clutter

[stilltryin]

if you put them in a hessian bag that is wet, don't let them get cold, they die quite quickly from the cold, just like putting them in a fridge or freezer. I worked with a pro up north some years ago and we lost a couple of hundred that way, didn't happen twice. We put them in a wet bags on the foredeck of the boat. On the trip back the night air made it quite cool, that was the end of them

If you keep them tied up,moist, cool and out of the wind they can last up to a week without much trouble.

[Tally]

G'day,
The way I have kept them alive is by putting them in the bath tub (still tied) and with one of those spray bottles spray some water from where they came from (but I guess any salt water would be ok) straight into their mouths. You will notice the crabs start creating bubbles and having a good drink, do this a couple of times a day and they'll be fine. I have kept crabs for 6 days this way without loss so you should not have any probs keeping em a couple of days.

Cheers,
Jay.

Oh yeh and tell the missus and kids not to use the bath tub

[freefish]

Hi All, Thanks for that. Just want to keep them alive for a few days until I get hame. Don't want to use my fridge space & if I eat them as I go I'll end up with a squeaky voice. Bill

[Guardian]

When I was a kid my dad used to swear by putting live muddies in a box with mangrove leaves, this used to keep them alive for a couple of days. That is provided they were kept cool.

These days, I prefer to put them in a hessian bag, that is kept damp with sea water. I have kept muddies alive live this for 4 - 5 days when I have been on camping trips.

Len

[Kerry]

Damp newspapers, this is how they are exported live.

Cheers, Kerry.

[PG]

Me the same..muddies in a wet hessian bag washed over a few times to keep them fresh. BUT I found out just this passed weekend that sandcrabs are less tolerant and die much quicker so perhaps kill and cook sandies pretty quick. Anyone else had trouble or have any suggestions for sandcrabs?

[Big_Muddie]

PG,

Short of keeping the sandies in a holding cage in the water, there's not a lot you can do. They die very quickly. I am lucky enough to have a 240V diesel generator at the hut I stay at when fishing so I simply put the sandies straight into the fridge until I want to cook them - they keep very well that way.

My brother and I have what we call "crab motels" for muddies. #They are just big plastic buckets with a screw on lid. #we have cut the centre section out of the lid and replaced it with re-enforcing mesh, added a couple of centre supports half way up the inside of the buckets to rest another piece of reo on and drilled MANY 30mm holes all over the buckets including the bottom of them. #

We can keep up to 16 crabs in them quite comfortably.

The crabs live happily for several days - they get dunked twice a day and we keep them in a place that is out of the wind and heat. #As others have said, they are vulnerable to temperature extremes and to quick changes in temp. #We've lost a few because of that - unfortunate but a chance you take when you don't cook straight away.