The Last Red Army

In a story that sounds like something that should be datelined 1 April, not 28 February, the Telegraph reports that a huge army of giant crabs is migrating south along the Norwegian coast, wreaking ecological havoc as they go.

The monster crabs, which can weigh up to 25lb and have a claw-span of more than three feet, are proving so resilient that scientists fear they could end up as far south as Gibraltar.
Energised by a mysterious population explosion a decade ago, whole armies of the crustaceans – known as the Kamchatka or Red King Crabs – have already advanced about 400 miles along the roof of Europe, overwhelming the ports of northern Norway.
They now number more than 10 million and have reached the Lofoten Islands off north-west Scandinavia, leaving in their wake what one expert described as “an underwater desert”.

The crabs were originally imported to the Barents Sea by Stalin, to provide a food resource in northern Russia.

Norway’s uncertain whether to try to get rid of the critters, or sell them for food.

For years the Norwegian government has ignored the underwater advance, undecided whether to treat the crabs as a resource or a pest. The animal’s legs are considered a delicacy and fetch top dollar in Japan and America. Even in Oslo, consumers pay around 200 Norwegian kronor (£15) a pound. Served with bread, butter, lemon and mayonnaise, the taste and texture of the crab meat is comparable with that of the finest lobster. One leg is enough to provide a grown man with a filling meal.
At present, some Norwegian fishermen have been granted seasonal licences to catch the Kamchatka crab but stiff regulations on the size of the boat used and other criteria mean they are few in number.
[…] Aasmund Bjordal, of the Department of Marine esources in the western Norwegian town of Bergen, said: “We’re between two policies. One is to get rid of the crabs. The other is to manage it as a fishing resource. In the meantime, it’s already become an important source of income for some fishermen in the north. The problem is that it may be destroying the fishing stock.”

Or, as one Norwegian put it: “It’s true the seabed now looks like the Sahara but they certainly taste good.”

(via GoaF)