Fishery-induced changes in Norwegian red king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) reproductive potential

Abstract

Abstract Hjelset, A. M. 2014. Fishery-induced changes in Norwegian red king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) reproductive potential. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 71: 365–373. The introduced red king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) in the Barents Sea supports a valuable fishery in northern Norway. In this paper, I examine the effect of the increased harvest rate and the recently added female quota on the potential egg production of the stock. The size ranges of males and females in the period 1995–2011 were recorded, and estimated stock abundance of ovigerous females and established individual fecundity parameters from 2000–2007 were used to assess the reproductive potential of the stock from 1995–2011. The upper size ranges of males and females decreased throughout the period studied, presumably mainly due to fishing. The change in size composition among ovigerous females and functional mature males, and the reduced mean individual fecundity in the stock seem to have had a negative effect on the potential egg production of the stock.