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Video length: 2 min
Fishing: the mysterious scarcity of crab in French waters
Fishing: the mysterious scarcity of crab in French waters
(France 2)
Crab fishermen often return empty-handed. Since 2018, crab has become scarce, to the point that catches have been divided by four. A scientific investigation has been launched to explain this phenomenon.
When he leaves the port of Cherbourg, in the English Channel, Gérard Thomine has no illusions. For several years, there has been a shortage of crab, while the fishermen’s baskets were previously full to the brim. Since 2018, catches of these crabs in France have been divided by four. An unprecedented collapse that scientists still cannot explain.
Fishing, which is already highly regulated, is not the cause. A parasite or disease could therefore explain this phenomenon. “They don’t have a nice color, they are spotted”notes the fisherman, also unable to find the source of the problem. Ifremer scientists have launched an investigation to explain this disappearance. It could be linked to climate change. Only Norway is, for the moment, spared.