It’s the pause before the claws, as Cortez prepares for stone crab season.
Karen Bell, owner of A.P. Bell Fish Co. and Starfish Cafe in Cortez, said crabbers are readying their gear for the Oct. 15 opening.
“They’re doing it now. They’ve got their traps ready. They’ve got buoys and the new tags on all their gear. They do that every year,” Bell told The Islander Sept. 24.
While the season starts Oct. 15 and crabbers are allowed to drop traps on Oct. 1, Bell said, “fresh claws most likely won’t be available until the 16th.”
Florida’s commercial stone crab season runs Oct. 15-May 1. By state law, only claws measuring at least 2-7/8 inches can be harvested and crabbers can only remove one claw per crab, which must be returned to the water. Egg-bearing females are off-limits and traps must include escape rings to protect undersized crabs.
Bait shortages this year are complicating preparations. Pigs’ feet, long favored as bait because they last in traps, have become harder to find in recent years as more of the supply is shipped overseas.
“Prices are off the charts this year,” Bell said of pigs’ feet.
The new season follows a mixed 2024-25 harvest, when Cortez boats landed steady volumes but struggled with “floaters” — claws from molting crabs that carry less meat and fetch lower prices.
This year, captains are hoping for harder shells, which bring better returns.
But another complication is uncertainty in the seafood market. Bell pointed to federal indictments involving five major seafood houses in the state for alleged price-fixing and antitrust violations. The companies are among the biggest buyers of stone crab and their legal issues might impact the industry.
“There’s literally probably less than 10 major dealers in the state and that’s really not good for our industry,” Bell said.
The possible consolidation of buying power adds to what she described as an already difficult line of work.
“It’s labor-intensive. It’s hard to find people to help,” Bell said.