The brown crab is sometimes called the edible crab, and is a large crab with a characteristic “pie crust like” edge to its shell. It is an orange/red/brown colour, with eight legs and two, very large and powerful claws with the pincers, which are usually black tipped.

This crab is commercially important in Scottish Waters, with landings in 2020 of 6,670 tonnes.

 

Behaviour

This crab is an active predator that will feast on mussels, whelks and even smaller crabs. They are also known to dig for prey such as razor clams. Brown crabs will shed their shell and enter the peeler phase regularly in their first few years of life when they are growing rapidly, but this slows down to shedding their shell once a year or less as they get older.

Size

Up to 25 cm across the carapace.

Status

Common

Distribution

All around Scotland’s Coastline.

When to see

All year around.

Facts

• Cancer is the Latin word for crab, and the reason for a disease being named after an animal is disputed.