How to distinguish male and female crabs
Crab is a delicacy on the table and is deeply loved by people. However, many people don’t know much about how to distinguish male and female crabs. This article will combine the hot topics and hot content on the Internet in the past 10 days to introduce in detail how to distinguish male and female crabs, and provide structured data to help you easily identify them.
1. Basic differences between male and female crabs

There are obvious differences between male and female crabs in appearance, physical characteristics and behavior. Here are the main differences between male and female crabs:
| Features | male crab | female crab |
|---|---|---|
| abdominal shape | Long and narrow, triangular in shape | Broad, round or semi-circular |
| crab navel | thin, long | rounded, short |
| Crab claw size | larger, stronger | Small and relatively slender |
| crab roe | No crab roe | With crab roe (breeding period) |
2. How to distinguish male and female crabs by the shape of their abdomens
The shape of the abdomen is the most intuitive way to distinguish male and female crabs. The abdomen of male crabs is usually narrower and triangular in shape, while that of female crabs is wider and round or semicircular. The following is a specific comparison:
| abdominal features | male crab | female crab |
|---|---|---|
| shape | triangle | round or semi-circular |
| Width | Narrow | Wider |
| softness | Harder | Softer (breeding period) |
3. Distinguish male and female crabs through their navel
The navel is a piece of carapace under the abdomen of the crab. The shape of the navel of male and female crabs is obviously different. The navel of male crabs is pointed and long, while that of female crabs is rounded and shorter. The following is a detailed comparison:
| Crab navel characteristics | male crab | female crab |
|---|---|---|
| shape | tapered | mellow |
| length | longer | shorter |
| Color | usually deeper | usually shallower |
4. Differences in behavior between male and female crabs
In addition to physical characteristics, male and female crabs also differ in behavior. Male crabs are usually more active and aggressive, especially when fighting for territory or mates. Female crabs are relatively gentle, especially during the breeding season, and will show more protective behaviors.
| behavioral characteristics | male crab | female crab |
|---|---|---|
| Activity | higher | lower |
| Aggression | Stronger | weaker |
| reproductive behavior | Chasing the female crab | protect eggs |
5. How to choose male and female crabs
When choosing crabs, you can choose male and female crabs based on personal preferences and uses. Male crabs have fuller meat and are suitable for people who like crab meat; female crabs will have rich crab roe during the breeding period, which is suitable for people who like crab roe. Here are some suggestions for selection:
| Purpose | Recommended choice |
|---|---|
| edible crabmeat | male crab |
| edible crab roe | Female crab (breeding period) |
| Breeding | Select according to breeding needs |
6. Summary
Through the above introduction, I believe everyone has a clearer understanding of how to distinguish male and female crabs. Male and female crabs can be easily identified, whether by the shape of their abdomens, navel characteristics, or behavioral differences. Hopefully this article will help you make a more informed choice when buying or raising crabs.
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