Eat octopus to save the British crab, say fishermen

Off the coast of Dartmouth, Devon, fishermen face a dramatic shift as octopus blooms upend the crab fishery. By midday, Alan Steer, 56, and his crew had pulled in nearly two tons of octopus, while brown crabs were conspicuously absent from the catch. Mediterranean octopuses arrived in large numbers last year, and scientists believe they have mated in UK waters this season, wiping out much of the crab stock. Octopus landings in UK waters have more than doubled to about 1,300 tons this year, while crab catches have fallen sharply, according to the Marine Management Organisation. Steer, vice-chairman of the South Devon and Channel Shell-fishermen association, notes the bonanza is uneven and precarious for most boats.