Vol. 53 - Alaska Resources Library and Information Services

y strong tides, then similar larval behavioral traits would have a
similar biological significance.
4.2 Interannual Larval Hatch and Development
Although the larval hatch and release was late this year when compared
to the average for red king crab in Bristol Bay found by Armstrong, et
al. (1983b), it was not the latest recorded. The 1976 release was after
10 May, and the timing of development for 1983 was very similar to the
1978 release (Figure 4.2-1). The 1982 release may also have been
similar to 1978 and 1983 in timing; however, sampling was too late last
year to be strictly comparable.
The most apparent aspect of Figure 4.2-1 is the highly variable timing
between years of the initial hatch release. Physical factors, such as
water temperature, are likely the cause of the five plus week difference
in timing between releases. This hypothesis finds further support in a
recently released U.S. NOAA Weather Service report on this past decade's
weather. According to this report, the past ten years, covering the
period studied by Armstrong, et al. (1983b) and this investigation, has
been one of the most variable decades for weather ever measured, with
three of the warmest years and three of the coldest years on record. If
water temperature or another physical factor is the cause of the differences
in timing, then the variations in timing of larvae release may
be due to such variability in weather patterns.
4.3 Post-larval Size and Age Distribution
In the southeastern Bering Sea the time of appearance of the first red
king crab juvenile stage varies over four to six weeks after hatching,
with peak settlement in early July near Unalaska and mid-August in
Bristol Bay (Weber 1967). Juvenile growth progresses from between 2.6
and 3 mm at settlement to an average of 11 mm at 12 months after settlement.
Development during this time progresses through eight (Powell
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