Shore crabs are present year-round and are generally classified as a pest due to their bait-stealing behavior. As winter turns to spring and the water temperature begins to rise, shore crabs will begin to peel or burst. When the crabs begin the skinning process, they are probably the most productive and preferred bait for sea anglers.
Many crabs skin 3 times a year, usually in their juvenile stages of life. Peeling is when a crab sheds its current shell to allow it to grow. Crabs do this by drinking and storing large amounts of seawater, which in turn swells the inside of the body, forcing the shell to crack, revealing a new, soft shell underneath. They do this under the cover of brush or a safe hiding place, as this is when the crab is most vulnerable to predators.
Skinner crabs are generally collected on the beach at low tide. They can be found under rocks, around breakwaters, walls, and pier uprights.
There are several ways to tell if a crab is a sheller. The first is if it is losing its shell and is dull in color and brittle, which is prone to cracking. Another way is to rub its back with a small amount of pressure to see if the shell starts to crack. If the shell has not yet burst, you can remove the last segment of the penultimate stretch. If a fully formed leg segment is left behind, then it is a sheller crab. If all you get is a white strand of slime, then the crab isn’t peeling and reattaching.
To keep your skinner crabs in top condition, ready to use as bait. Skin crabs should be kept refrigerated and checked daily. Store shell crabs in an ice cream type container, store in a refrigerator at all times and cover with seaweed soaked in fresh seawater, this should be changed 3 times a week. Another method is to use shredded newspaper placed in a secure tub and spray them daily with fresh seawater just to keep them moist.
Skin crab presentation is as important as harvesting and preservation, they can be used as bait on their own or tipped with a rag or barb, larger skin crabs can be cut in half and used on smaller hooks.
To prepare a skin crab, the legs and hard parts of the shell are first removed. Do this: twisting the legs at the leg joint, turn to one side, and then carefully pull to the other side, and try not to twist the joint or you will tear the flesh of the body.
One of the bottom of the main body with your fingernail, lift the top edge of the rear plate. Now locate the top of the center body plate, it is the V shape that intersects the mouth guards, gently pull up then lower lifting the entire plate.
The side cheek plates are the next to remove and are often the easiest part of the entire crab to remove. On the mouth guards, twist and pull gently, don’t worry if it doesn’t all come out or you end up pulling some of the meat.
last bit! Flip the crab over so the top and back are facing; Gently insert your finger or thumbnail under the trailing edge of the upper (main) shell and apply light pressure to the meat below with your other hand and lift up the shell. turning on the front edge with the eyes.
If you’re freezing the crab, you’ll need to remove the lungs or the dead man’s fingers. It’s the little bits of brown/pink feathers on the side of the crab.
And that’s it, you have a juicy crab bait that can almost be cut in half and put upright and tied with an elastic bait. Remember that the skinner crab can be used to tip rags, lugs, and other baits.