Understanding The Habitat Preferences Of Juvenile Blue Crabs In Louisiana Estuaries When Presented With Food Cues

Blue crabs (Callinectes sapidus), in addition to being ecologically critical in coastal systems, support a thriving fishery across the Southeastern United States, with the state of Louisiana leading the nation in harvests (Posadas 2020; LDWF 2022). Along with other decapods known to use a wide variety of habitats across their life cycle (Pittman and McAlpine, 2001; Moksnes & Heck Jr., 2006), the juvenile phase of a Blue crab’s life cycle is characterized by intense association with estuarine structured habitat. It has been shown in previous research that submerged aquatic vegetation and oyster reefs potentially provide critical habitat to young crabs (Heck Jr. et. al., 2001; Longmire et al., 2021). However, studies investigating how strong food cues are in the process of how juvenile Blue crabs select habitats have been lacking. In the midst of changing environmental conditions in coastal Louisiana, understanding how young Blue crabs choose and associate with structured habitat in coastal estuaries will be critical in managing the fishery and ecosystem as a whole. The goal of this experiment was to identify key habitats chosen by juvenile Blue crabs when presented with food cues in order to provide habitat usage information to agencies involved in coastal restoration and fisheries management.