White Colored Crab?

Type: Chesapeake
Region:
Location: Chesapeake Bay

I�ve been crabbing the Benedict area for 6 years now and the past 2 years I have caught a male crab with no color pigment in one claw. I�m curious if this is rare catch and has anyone caught a fully white crab before? Even when the crab is steamed, the claw remains white.

Thanks,
Joe

DNR's Response: Brenda Davis, Blue Crab Program Coordinator, True albinism is a genetic disorder that causes a complete or nearly complete lack of pigment. Therefore a crab that is mostly a normal color but has a while claw is not technically albino � although any of the many variations in the lack of color in crabs is still very interesting. I am not sure how much work has been done on the pigment variation � I don�t know if the color is consistently the same after it molts (would the claw always be white)? Very interesting you have caught crabs w/ the same color pattern two years in a row. As far as a completely white crab goes � there have been some that have had very little color on them, but I haven�t seen one that didn�t have at least a little blue on it. Crabs that have very little color are relatively rare � and when they do occur they stick out like a sore thumb and are easy pickings for a hungry predator so it�s not likely they�ll live long.