Plenty of peelers around now lads!

[m.b3]

digging bait this morning (should have been fishing really, what a day...), had a dozen peelers in 10min. nice and easy! make sure u let the bass know! cheers....

[SOD]

I was out yesterday morning collecting crab and got 13 nice peelers and 5 soft backs . Hopefully this trend will continue for a while . Im thinking of heading to wexford in two weeks and a bucket full of peelers would be nice .

[arthurg]

I'm completely out of my depth regarding peelers but would love to try them.

How do you find them. I presume you get them up here in Donegal (stupid question really as all crabs must shed their shells to grow so ours will be no different).

Can they be frozen for later in the year? If so, how do you do it?

Any other advice?

Cheers.

Arthur

[kieran]

I am sure there are loads in Donegal :D , especially after a warm week around this time of year. It is pretty much peak season for peelers.

As crabs begin their moult, they move into crevices and under rocks to find protection while the new skin hardens. People put down traps (types and pipes are common) to attract the crabs to make collection simpler.

Ideally you are looking for crabs that are "popping", with cracks appearing beneath the carapace and above the legs but soft shelled crabs will do find, however the shells will harden remarkably quickly in either air or water. One important point is to always replace rocks EXACTLY as they were during the search. Lots of heavily matted seaweed is a good sign in most locations with the loose rock under cliffs a perfect spot.

Freezing them is simple enough. Kill them (hard smack on the head between the eyes but don't squash them). Strip off the legs and claws and leave these aside for the moment. Remove the carapace and strip away the other bits of shell. Carefully insert a sharp scissors above each leg and cut out the brown frilly gills. They can ruin the bait over time.

Wrap in silver foil and pop into the freezer.

Now, back to the legs and claws. Twisting lightly is the best way of removing the shells from these sections. These baits are superb for flatfish and come ready wrapped.

If the shell is not cracked as above, the simplest way to test is a crab is a peeler is to twise lightly on the bottom segment of the smallest leg and if it comes away, you have yourself a peeler. Check the website for more details under "bait". I am not sure about this but someone told me that if you find two crabs together, one under the other, the bottom crab is likely to be a peeler, although someone else said it was simply down to the mating season! Maybe someone could confirm or deny this for us? :roll:

Thanks

[m.b3]

the crab underneath is a peeler/ soft back alright. some avoid collecting these as they are mating and the crab underneath is usually small. i would usually leave them alone unless i am stuck. it's up to you really.

[George]

How do you quicken the peeling process if you have crabs at the early stage?

[m.b3]

George, keep the crabs submerged in seawater and use an aerator pump, like those used in aquariums. rinse your pump out with freshwater to avoid corrosion afterwards. you can get them to peel over night this way. hope this helps.

[SOD]

I bought an Aerator pump recently to use to quicken the peeling process . Have yet to use it for the peelers but have used to keep live sandeels . As soon as I use it for the peelers i will let you know the result .

[traintrain]

I've spent the last 6 months researching online the life history of the green shore crab - some very interesting reading. As Keiran mentioned; a pair of crabs guarantees a peeler. This is because the female crab can only mate when she is soft. The male crab can sense the peeling hormones and will stay with a female holding her beneath him in order to ward of any predators intent on some soft juicy crab and also to ensure that no other male crabs get their hands on her (for hands read claws).

Though in the sources that I read there was no claim that the peeling cycle can be speeded up observations on crabs from three different geographical areas confirmed that those in warmer waters had a higher metabolism and thus were more active. This in turn meant them feeding more which in turm meant they grew faster.

Hope this helps.

[George]

How much will a decent aerator pump cost?

[SOD]

Mine cost 10 euro . It runs on 2 D size battery's .

[pete]

Going a bit mad in the head at this stage trying to find peeler crab. Now aside from setting traps where am going to find them. Please don't say turn over rocks cause I'm sick to @!dkfjds death turning over rocks(and yes I do turn them back when finished). If there not under rocks are they buried in mud? Out in open mud or in the mud around the rocks? Back to the rocks again. Am I searching to high up on the shore maybe? Are traps the only way? The estuary I live beside is full of crab but I can't find em when there peeling!!! Please help!

Pete

[dtmcc]

Hi pete

know the feeling, I am also going mad, done the same as yourself, + I have put traps out.

I have one sore arm, carrying old tyrs out over ground that I KNOW the wee buggers are hiding in, "see the odd old shell" and last year by the end of May the old shells just littered the wreck beds.

thing is,! what spacing does one give to the traps?????

so many Q's life is getting shorter.

Kieran, need to know what my password is, so as I can install new hard-drive to the PC. This is the only site I have forgooten my password..........


Dave

and why does that avarter not want to work for me????

[IDPearl]

Dave,

You can get your password by clicking on the small "Forgot my password" link as you try to login. This will send your password to your e-mail address.

Ian

[dtmcc]

Hi Ian

See above : just post here instead

Hi there idpearl

Been there, done that, and it don't work,,,,,,,,,,,aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh
Have been trying for the last 4-5 weeks to remember my bloody past word.

This is mainly due to the fact that when I do change the hard drive that I am also changing to the broswer to "Firefox" which is the faster model than Mozilla my current one.

Why??? cuz most virus attack MS Internet explorer, I could rattle on but not tonite

Dave

Hows the fishing with you?

[pete]

Dave,
Have you figured out where the best place to lay the traps? Are you putting them on muddy or sandy substrate or are you putting them in amonst the wrack? It's getting to the stage where I'm finding it more difficult to catch peelers than actual bloody fish!

Pete

[drseafish]

Pete,

The best place to lay traps is in the mud, just above or below the neap tide mark. The crabs move up the beach and will go to the first suitable place they find ie your traps. Make sure the tyres are well set in the mud and have holes along the surface edge to let air out otherwise they will be move by the first few tides. It also best to place them in close lines as it tends for form more shelter for weed growth and allow easy access. IF your from up the country you may find the peeling season starts a few weeks later than say in Munster, where it will hit maximum in the next week or so. Good luck

[kieran]

Hi

Just thinking to myself, peeling a popper in Tramore this week, when you buy a frozen crab, especially the ones wrapped in foil, you only get the body! What happens to the claws and legs - they are exceptional baits and work extremely well dangling off the hook holding a half / full peeler?

Any ideas...

[George]

I would put traps near to feutures such as bridge supports, rocky areas, breakwaters, walls e.t.c. as this is where the crabs will seek shelter. Although if you have a substantial amount of traps such as a large line of tyres than it doesn't matter as much as it will become a feuture in itself.