Overview
- Researchers at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center ran tethering trials in the Rhode River from 1989 to 2025 and published the results in PNAS.
- About 74% of tethered juveniles survived 24 hours, with roughly 42% showing injuries or remains consistent with attacks by other blue crabs.
- No fish predation was detected in the mid-salinity study area, a result supported by high-resolution sonar observations of attacks by adult crabs.
- Shallow nearshore zones offered strong refuge, with small juveniles far less likely to be eaten in the shallowest waters than in depths of 1.3–2.5 feet.
- Coverage differs on the magnitude of cannibalism, with Scientific American citing 97% of killings or injuries and other reports emphasizing the ~42% cannibalism indicators, while authors also warn that shoreline hardening and invasive blue catfish threaten these refuges.