Seafood Watch - Seafood Guide

Jonah Crab

© Scandinavian Fishing Yearbook/www.scandfish.com
SEAFOODRATINGMARKET NAMESWHERE CAUGHTHOW CAUGHT
Blue Crab Good Alternative: These are good alternatives to the best choices column. There are some concerns with how they are fished or farmed – or with the health of their habitats due to other human impacts. Blue-Claw Crab, Hardshell Crab, Kani, Softshell Crab U.S. Pot
Blue Crab Best Choice: These fish are abundant, well managed and fished or farmed in environmentally friendly ways. Blue-Claw Crab, Hardshell Crab, Kani, Softshell Crab U.S. Chesapeake Bay Trotline
Dungeness Crab Good Alternative: These are good alternatives to the best choices column. There are some concerns with how they are fished or farmed – or with the health of their habitats due to other human impacts. Commercial Crab, Market Crab, Pacific Edible Crab, San Francisco Crab Alaska Trap
Dungeness Crab Best Choice: These fish are abundant, well managed and fished or farmed in environmentally friendly ways. Commercial Crab, Market Crab, Pacific Edible Crab, San Francisco Crab California, Oregon, Washington Trap
Jonah Crab Good Alternative: These are good alternatives to the best choices column. There are some concerns with how they are fished or farmed – or with the health of their habitats due to other human impacts. Atlantic Dungeness Crab U.S. Atlantic Wild-caught
King Crab Good Alternative: These are good alternatives to the best choices column. There are some concerns with how they are fished or farmed – or with the health of their habitats due to other human impacts. Alaska King Crab, Blue King Crab, Golden King Crab, Kani, Red King Crab U.S. Trap
King Crab, Red Avoid: Avoid these products for now. These fish come from sources that are overfished or fished or farmed in ways that harm the environment. Blue King Crab, Golden King Crab, Kani, King Crab, Red King Crab Russia Trap
King Crab, Southern Good Alternative: These are good alternatives to the best choices column. There are some concerns with how they are fished or farmed – or with the health of their habitats due to other human impacts. King Crab, Southern Red King Crab, Centolla Argentina Pot,Trap
Kona Crab Good Alternative: These are good alternatives to the best choices column. There are some concerns with how they are fished or farmed – or with the health of their habitats due to other human impacts. Frog Crab, Papa'i kualoa, Spanner Crab Hawaii Wild-caught
Kona Crab Best Choice: These fish are abundant, well managed and fished or farmed in environmentally friendly ways. Frog Crab, Spanner Crab Australia Wild-caught
Snow Crab Best Choice: These fish are abundant, well managed and fished or farmed in environmentally friendly ways. Kani, Queen Crab, Snow Crab, Spider Crab, Tanner Crab Eastern Bering Sea, U.S. Pot, Trap
Snow Crab Good Alternative: These are good alternatives to the best choices column. There are some concerns with how they are fished or farmed – or with the health of their habitats due to other human impacts. Kani, Queen Crab, Snow Crab, Spider Crab, Tanner Crab Eastern Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada Pot, Trap
Snow Crab Best Choice: These fish are abundant, well managed and fished or farmed in environmentally friendly ways. Kani, Queen Crab, Snow Crab, Spider Crab, Tanner Crab Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada Pot, Trap
Stone Crab Best Choice: These fish are abundant, well managed and fished or farmed in environmentally friendly ways. Florida Stone Crab, Gulf Stone Crab U.S. Atlantic, U.S. Gulf of Mexico Trap


Jonah Crab

This is a new fishery, which means little is known about the population size.

Consumer Note

Jonah crab is commonly sold live, but Jonah "snap-‘n-eats" (pre-cooked, pre-cracked crab claws) have been recently promoted by seafood companies.

Summary

The Jonah crab fishery has only recently emerged along the northeast Atlantic coast. As a result, fishery managers and scientists know little about population status.

Most Jonah crab is caught in pots intended to catch lobster. The infrequent accidental entanglement of endangered North Atlantic right whales in lobster fishing gear is an ongoing environmental concern for both the lobster and Jonah crab fisheries.


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How fish are caught or farmed makes a difference. Fishing boat