Stone Crab season in Florida, which runs from October to May, is highly anticipated by lovers of the succulent crab claws. But according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, stone crab populations in Florida have been in decline for many years. St. Petersburg College Science Professors Dr. Linae Boehme-Terrana and Dr. Erin Goergen recently collaborated with Mote Marine Laboratories and the University of Tampa to study habitat selection among stone crabs in hopes of finding information that will help increase their populations. Their findings are published in the February 2022 volume of the Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology.

The article, Habitat selection by post-settlement juvenile stone crabs (Menippe mercenaria) and Predation Risk in Shallow Near-Shore Habitats, was co-authored by Boehme-Terrana, Goergen, University of Tampa Professor Michelle Roux-Osovitz, Florida International University graduate student and Mote intern Harrison Mancke, Philip Gravinese, a professor at Florida Southern College, and SPC student Samantha Fisher. 

The collaborative study was funded in part by Mote, as well as a Titan Achievement Grant from the SPC Foundation. Titan Achievement Grants provide up to $3500 to St. Petersburg College faculty and staff who seek to implement programs that broaden the scope of curriculum, deepen the college experience and enhance student success.

Safe Havens

The research focused on finding out which habitat is the best for young stone crabs to avoid predators and reach maturity.

“When they hatch, the young crabs are microscopically small and just float around,” Boehme-Terrana said. “Once they get to be about two mm long, they need a place to live – and preferably survive. It’s like they need to settle down and find their first apartment.”

This time in their life cycle is when the crabs start to look like food to predators such as conch, grouper, sea turtles and octopuses, so this stage presents survival challenges that prevent many from reaching sexual maturity. Increasing the number of crabs who live long enough to reproduce benefits Florida’s stone crab fisheries, which hold a huge commercial importance.

“The wild is really cruel,” Boehme-Terrana said. “Everything wants to eat stone crab – not just tourists. We’re looking at ways to build fisheries, and we found that if we want more stone crabs, we need more places for them to hide. More grasses mean more hiding places that allow them to reach maturity.”

Research benefits teaching and learning

According to Boehme-Terrana, almost two dozen students were able to work on the research project.

“This type of project teaches good practice and habits and ways of thinking that just can’t be learned in a classroom,” she said. “We’re trying to get more long-term monitoring projects set up that will allow even more hands-on research for our students, because this is just the type of experience that employers are looking for.”

One student in particular benefited from the experience. Samantha Fisher was put in charge of the field work and took on a major subset of data in the study. Fisher earned co-authorship on the article and was also completed an internship at Mote. She said the experience helped her land her current job with Florida Fish and Wildlife.

“During my interview, I talked a lot about my internship and research experience at SPC,” Fisher said. “I firmly believe that’s what got me this job. I learned the skills required for collecting data points and doing observation in the field, and I learned to be adaptable and detail oriented.”

Goergen believes that field research greatly benefits faculty.

“I love teaching, but the demands of it can create long stretches between publications. Research projects like this one actually support good teaching, because they keep you current in your field,” she said. “When you’re doing them, you have to be constantly looking at the new literature, or you might miss something,”

Boehme agrees.

“Poets write, artists paint. All faculty should be able to practice their art,” she said. “SPC faculty can and do want to continue to practice in their fields, and their ability to do so benefits our students.”