OCR Text |
Show Crabi "Shed" Quickly The transition of crabs through tha three stages from peeler through soft shell to hard shell Is only a matter of a very few hours under natural conditions. con-ditions. The hardshell crab, having outgrown its shell and with a new or soft shell developed beneath, gradually gradual-ly breaks out of the hard shell. During Dur-ing that stage it is known as a peeler. Once out of the shell the new shell is soft and will remain so if the crab Is taken out of the water and packed for shipment to market, however, if the crab remains in the water for two or three hours after, sloughing the shell, the new shell also becomes hard. The entire process may not require more than four or five hours. |