03 March 2026

Conducting research on the hairy quadrangular crab in the West Sakhalin subzone

Andrey Danilov, Lead Engineer at the Laboratory of Commercial Aquatic Beasts at the Sakhalin Branch of the Russian State Research Center "All-Russian Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography" (VNIRO), monitored commercial catches and collected bio- and industrial statistics data.
 
The research was conducted in February 2026 on the medium-sized fishing vessel "Foton," which was fishing for crab off the southwestern coast of Sakhalin.
 
During the voyage, 46 trap stations were set. The catch consisted primarily of commercial male horsehair crabs; the proportion of females and non-commercial males was insignificant. Biological analysis included measurements of the carapace width and length, the height of the right (larger) claw, and sex determination (for 910 specimens). In addition, bycatch data was collected, the most common of which was the giant Doflein's octopus (41 specimens measured). The collected data was statistically processed using accepted fisheries research methods.
 
The fishery was characterized by low catch rates, which is typical for this period of the year and the state of the stock, which is represented by low- and medium-yielding year-classes.
 
VNIRO Press Service