Brown Crab

The photo above is of Lyme Regis Marine Aquarium owner Max Gollop holding Hercules, a large brown crab who was hauled up from the deep off Lyme Regis in the net of a local fisherman in November 2020. He weighs over 7lbs (3.2kg), has a body measuring 27cm wide and boasts huge claws.

Max commented “He's one of the biggest I’ve seen, a fantastic looking specimen with an awesome set of fist-sized claws.

“Due to his mammoth size, it’s clear he has been around for a long time and it would be a shame for him to end up as someone's lunch.
Our plan is to look after him in the aquarium for a few months before returning him to the sea”.

The brown crab is by far the largest crab species found in waters around Lyme Regis, with the carapace of a fully grown adult being around 20cm across, and in exceptional specimens 25-30cm. The upper shell of the crab is oval shaped and usually an orange-red colour with paler undersides. 

Like all of the crab species in British waters, they have eight legs and two, very large and powerful claws, with the pincers usually being black. One of the most distinguishable features of this species of crab is the pattern which runs along the edge of the carapace which is usually described as resembling a pie crust. Due to their large and powerful claws the brown crab can cause a very painful nip to humans it comes across.

The brown crab will be found in areas where there are rocks and weed to provide cover. The crab will hide in cracks and under weed and emerge to forage for food. They have an insatiable appetite, feeding on dead marine organisms and shellfish and will use their strength and power to ambush other crabs, especially the common shore crab. Smaller, younger brown crabs tend to live in seashore areas, moving into deeper water as they get older and grow in size. The largest, fully-grown brown crabs will live in water down to around one hundred metres deep.

Brown crabs will shell and enter the peeler phase often in their first few years of life when they are growing rapidly, but this slows down to shedding their shell once a year or less as they get older. It is thought that brown crabs have a natural lifespan of around 30 years, and in exceptional circumstances can live for over 100 years.