Mud crab tips for the holidays by Sean Thompson

Chasing mud crabs over the summer holidays is a popular pastime and a long held tradition for many QLD families. What's great about crabbing is that if you put some pots out while having a fish you may be able to take home a great feed of succulent crabs for the family, even if the fishing is poor. When the winds are too strong for a fish, or the kids are getting bored over the school holidays, crabbing becomes an even better option.
If you do have kids, or even relatives or friends with kids and haven't taken them crabbing before, it's a must! The anticipation of pulling a crab pot up is always fun, but it is made all the more enjoyable with kids. I always grin ear to ear when I hear the squeals of delight from the kids as they struggle with the weight of the pot and, as it's heaved into the boat, it's as if you've entered the maternity ward with everyone yelling - 'it's a boy!'
Yet, despite the popularity of crabbbing, not all mud crabbers are as successful as they could be. This article provides some quick and easy tips to help lift your success rate in catching a feed of beautiful muddies this summer and beyond.
TYPE OF POTS
Rectangular pots are a cheap and lightweight option that collapses, making them easy to transport or carry. You might consider them if space is tight in your boat or you need to carry them out on the mudflats by foot. These pots do suffer a few negative design flaws.
I have found the nylon mesh in these pots is thin and will need to be repaired after a few crab trips as crabs attempt to escape. The metal latches that close the pots are also weak and do not last, often needing to be replaced with wire.
They only have two entry points and off-the-shelf, these entry points are usually very loose and will allow crabs to easily escape. You can go some way to overcoming this problem by using snap lock ties to pull the mesh tight and tighten the entry points. This makes the entry springier and allows easier access, while at the same time making it more difficult for the crabs to escape.
Finally, these pots don't come with a decent in-built bait pouch. In fact the tiny bait pouch they come with would barely be big enough to attract a soldier crab, let alone a muddy! I also see a few people tie their bait directly to the bottom of the pot with fishing line or off-the-shelf steel bait clips. This gives crabs and fish easy access to quickly tear it to shreds, leaving you with little or no bait if left overnight.
Plastic mesh bait holders are a better option, which you can buy from tackle shops. These will keep your bait intact longer although once again they are not big enough for big baits like chicken carcasses. I used to make my own with gutter-guard and snap lock ties until I got sick of repairing the damage from crabs after only a couple of trips.
The best option for the rectangular pot is to purchase heavy duty drawstring bait bags that are secured to either end of the pot with nylon line and metal hooks. They will keep the bait intact longer and make baiting up (and disposing of it) a breeze.
Round, four-entry heavy-duty crab pots are a much better option unless space or weight is an issue. The heavy-duty versions of these pots cost a little more but will last much longer than the lightweight versions. The mesh is stronger as are the thicker galvanised rings. Heavy-duty pots are also heavier and less likely to move in the current. This might not be an issue in small drains, but it is in bigger bays and rivers. Your pot is more likely to be where you left it rather than drifting with the current 500m or so down the system.
The round pots also have four entry points, making it easier for a crab to enter, while the entry points come tight and springy off the shelf. They also come with in-built bait holders, which make crabbing much easier.
You can also purchase specially designed triangular pots that are still heavy-duty yet smaller and a good option from the shore. The other great advantage of these pots is that the triangular design allows easy access to narrow drains or into tight mangrove spots which standard pots might not be able to get into. I have used these and they are a great option from the shore - Coucom's Crabpots and Fishing Gear at Yeppoon have these for sale online.
Hayes crab pots also make a range of pots, from the drop pot to the all nighter. The drop pot has a large opening at the top and is probably best suited to sand crabs for drops of 30-60 minutes. The Hayes all nighter (with a smaller single top opening) would be a better option for overnight muddy sessions.
BEST BAITS
Fresh bait is best for crabbing, and you should always replace your bait each day if you leave your pots in the water.
This has been well known for a while now by the majority of crabbers, although I don't think this was always the case. In fact about 15 years ago, my brother-in-law and I wanted to test the myth that rotten smelly baits are best. We put smelly fish carcasses in a couple of pots, while we used fresh bait in another pot nearby in equally good locations.
Even after the first night, the smelly baits remained untouched while the freshly baited pots had crabs in each day. On top of that, the stench of the rotten baits was overpowering! We eventually decided to ditch them after about 3-4 days as our laughter from the stench turned to dry retching after we pulled them up. I've only used fresh baits since.
Top crabbing baits include chicken carcasses, chicken pieces, pilchards, mullet or other oily fish. Try a local butcher for cheap chicken carcasses (usually 50c-$1 each), or fresh seafood shops for cheap oily fish carcasses.
Interestingly, the further north you go in QLD, the more common kangaroo meat and bones are for sale for use in crab pots and some crabbers up north swear by this bait. My mates and I have certainly done very well on kangaroo at Stanage Bay in the past, catching some monster crabs that are on offer there.
BEST TIMES
Pots left overnight will usually yield the best results. However, if theft is a problem, then place your pots out during the day on a rising tide and fish nearby. Rain will also bring on the crabs, although, if you get a lot of rain, move the pots to deeper water in the creek channels as the more dense saline water (which the crabs prefer) will sit below the muddier fresh water on top.
Another myth is that you can only catch crabs in months with an 'r' in them. In bigger bays like Moreton Bay, the edges of channels close to mangrove-lined islands are productive locations even through autumn and into winter. You get some monster crabs, full of meat in these spots during the cooler months as the crabs move to deeper water during these times.