Chinese mitten crab
(Eriocheir sinensis)
This species is Introduced in the United States
Origin
Eriocheir sinensis is native to China’s and South Korea’s coastal rivers and estuaries that drain to the Yellow Sea. The Chinese mitten crab has been introduced to several European countries and coastal waters of the United States
Life Cycle
Chinese mitten crabs are medium-sized crabs named for their hairy, mitten-like claws. They have a smooth, round carapace (top shell) that can be 3 inches wide. Their legs are generally twice as long as the carapace is wide. Chinese mitten crabs can also be distinguished by the notch between their eyes and the four lateral spines on their top shell. They vary in color from brownish orange to greenish-brown. Chinese mitten crabs are catadromous, meaning adults live in freshwater, and migrate downstream to brackish water estuaries to breed. Their offspring rear in the estuary, then returns upstream into rivers where they spend 2-5 years before repeating the cycle.
Distribution
Chinese mitten crabs were discovered in Chesapeake Bay (Maryland) in 2005 and Delaware Bay in 2007. They were found in the Hudson River (New York) in 2007 and have since been found as far inland as Albany. Chinese mitten crabs have been collected in the Gulf Coast, Canada, and the Great Lakes, but populations have not successfully established. However, they are established in numerous European countries.
Chinese mitten crabs were first found in California in the San Francisco Bay in 1992, and by 1996 had migrated upstream to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. By 1998, the crabs had traveled into the watershed as far north as Colusa County and as far south as Merced County. Chinese mitten crabs are believed to have experienced a bust after their population boom in the San Francisco Bay Delta watershed in the late 1990s, as they are rarely collected in the watershed today. Reports of sightings are strongly encouraged to help better understand the ongoing population of crabs in California.
Control Efforts
Although rarely reported, Chinese mitten crab is considered established in California. If you capture one please immediately kill it and report it to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. California prohibits the importation, transportation, or possession of all live species of genus Eriocheir per C.C.R. Title 14, § 671.
Eriocheir sinensis is native to China’s and South Korea’s coastal rivers and estuaries that drain to the Yellow Sea. The Chinese mitten crab has been introduced to several European countries and coastal waters of the United States
Life Cycle
Chinese mitten crabs are medium-sized crabs named for their hairy, mitten-like claws. They have a smooth, round carapace (top shell) that can be 3 inches wide. Their legs are generally twice as long as the carapace is wide. Chinese mitten crabs can also be distinguished by the notch between their eyes and the four lateral spines on their top shell. They vary in color from brownish orange to greenish-brown. Chinese mitten crabs are catadromous, meaning adults live in freshwater, and migrate downstream to brackish water estuaries to breed. Their offspring rear in the estuary, then returns upstream into rivers where they spend 2-5 years before repeating the cycle.
Distribution
Chinese mitten crabs were discovered in Chesapeake Bay (Maryland) in 2005 and Delaware Bay in 2007. They were found in the Hudson River (New York) in 2007 and have since been found as far inland as Albany. Chinese mitten crabs have been collected in the Gulf Coast, Canada, and the Great Lakes, but populations have not successfully established. However, they are established in numerous European countries.
Chinese mitten crabs were first found in California in the San Francisco Bay in 1992, and by 1996 had migrated upstream to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. By 1998, the crabs had traveled into the watershed as far north as Colusa County and as far south as Merced County. Chinese mitten crabs are believed to have experienced a bust after their population boom in the San Francisco Bay Delta watershed in the late 1990s, as they are rarely collected in the watershed today. Reports of sightings are strongly encouraged to help better understand the ongoing population of crabs in California.
Control Efforts
Although rarely reported, Chinese mitten crab is considered established in California. If you capture one please immediately kill it and report it to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. California prohibits the importation, transportation, or possession of all live species of genus Eriocheir per C.C.R. Title 14, § 671.
Resources
- Wikipedia - Wikimedia Foundation, Inc
- Global Invasive Species Database - Invasive Species Specialist Group
- Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database - U.S. Geological Survey
Selected Images
Maps
EDDMapS Distribution - This map is incomplete and is based only on current site and county level reports made by experts, herbaria, and literature. For more information, visit www.eddmaps.org
State Lists - This map identifies those states that have this species on their invasive species list or law.
Invasive Listing Sources
- Florida Conditional and Prohibited Non-Native Species Lists
- Invasive Species of Concern in Georgia
- Maryland Aquatic Nuisance Species Plan
- Maryland Invasive Species Council - Invasive Species of Concern in Maryland
- Mid-Atlantic Field Guide to Aquatic Invasive Species
- New Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team 2017 Invasive Species List
- New York Regulated and Prohibited Invasive Species - Prohibited
- Ontario’s Invading Species Awareness Program Tracked Species List
- Pennsylvania's Field Guide to Aquatic Invasive Species
- Wisconsin's Invasive species rule – NR 40
Taxonomic Rank
| Domain: Eukarya |
| Kingdom: Animalia |
| Phylum: Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: Crustacea |
| Class: Malacostraca |
| Order: Decapoda |
| Suborder: Pleocyemata |
| Infraorder: Brachyura |
| Superfamily: Grapsoidea |
| Family: Varunidae |
| Genus: Eriocheir |
| Eriocheir sinensis |