Fact sheet
The spider crab (Maia squinado, palinuridae/majidae families) gets its name from its shape and its ten long, thin claws resembling its ‘cousin’ on land. It is found in the north Atlantic (from Ireland to Guinea) and in the Mediterranean in smaller quantities, where it is called “esquinade”. Its life expectancy is about eight years and it grows by successive moults. It lives at a depths ranging from 10 to 120 metres. Called a “moussette” in its juvenile stage lasting about two years, its body grows up to 20 cm by absorbing calcium. Bristling with spines and equipped with a rostrum in the front, it weighs between 2.5 and 3 kg.
This shellfish has a lean, fine, slightly sweet meat (in the juvenile stage) and it lives along the coast, on the sandy-silty floors of bays or estuaries at depths of 10 m (in hot seasons) to 120 m (in cold seasons), rarely in the intertidal zone (coastal tides zone). Usually necrophageous, it feeds on detritus and small animals (sea anemones, algae, bivalves, gastropods, etc.) and it plays a role in the marine ecosystem. Among the females, hatching occurs from the end of June to October and the ‘nurseries’ are primarily located in the western Manche region (Saint-Brieuc, Cotentin).
Production and consumption
France is a large producer of spider crabs. Most of the intake is from Brittany and Normandy (Cotentin). It is fished with lobster pots or trammel nets following a highly seasonal schedule from April to June and ‘minima’ catches from August to October according to a minimum regulatory size of 12 cm. The production is still subject to strong fluctuation in catches and it can vary between 2 500 tons and 5 000 tons a year.
Studies of catches show that over 80% are composed of crabs from one generation (those entering the adult stage). A reduction in fishing and the reorganization of the trawling sector areas and seasons would help rebuild the reproductive stocks. The consumption remains stable at about 2 750 tons.
(Sources: FranceAgriMer, Sea Life)
At Rungis Market
Mr Remy from Reynaud :
“Spider crab is a fragile product that cannot deal with sharp temperature changes. It is available throughout the year on the market and it primarily sells at the end of the week, representing about 500 kg in 2 days. Spider crabs are larger in spring. That’s when you find males of 1.5 to 2 kg and females of 800 g.”
Sabine Moreux
