As a current fireman for the Bay Shore Fire Department for the past 55 years, and having previously worked for 24 years for New York City EMS and nine years with Bay Shore ambulance, George Mowbray has been helping people his whole life.

Since retiring from EMS work 11 years ago, the 73-year-old Bay Shore resident has begun helping those who cannot advocate for themselves: spider crabs.

Mowbray is passionate about helping the environment and began walking through the Bay Shore Marina and picking up garbage daily.

“And I saw all the spider crabs in the sand. And I thought, ‘How could anybody leave this here?’” wondered Mowbray. “Next thing you know, when I go and pick up the garbage, I also put the crabs back.”

Spider crabs are relatively small crabs with a hard shell that live at the bottom of the bay. Fishermen and crabbers regard spider crabs as a nuisance because they accidently catch spider crabs in traps or on lines, and the species does not have enough flesh on them to be considered edible.

Unfortunately, according to Mowbray, many of those who catch them kill the unwanted crabs by burying them in the sand to die or putting them in the garbage cans.

The first year he began his efforts, he counted 120 crabs in the sand of the Bay Shore Marina in one day alone. In another year, George Mowbray found 36 crabs in one 55-gallon garbage can drum, left for dead.

“When I find one still alive in the sand… picture this: it lives at the bottom of the bay. You pick that thing up, it is covered in sand, roasting in the sun in the middle of the summer, and I take them and put it back in the water,” shared Mowbray. “I could just imagine the relief this poor thing has. And I have so much empathy, because that is just what I do.”

Mowbray continuously teaches crabbers he meets at the marina about the importance of returning spider crabs to the water as soon as they are caught. As bottom feeders, spider crabs are an important part of the Great South Bay ecosystem, as they eat dead animals and plant material.

The Town of Islip has posted signs at the town-owned Bay Shore Marina that encourage everyone fishing off the docks to throw spider crabs back into the bay.

The Department of Environmental Conservation has signs posted at the marina regarding blue-claw crabs, which are the most common crab species targeted by recreational crabbers in New York. The signs provide guidance on the legal size and bag limit for blue crabs, stating that the body itself has to be over 4 inches, even including a ruler on the sign. Mowbray has been advocating to see that same type of strict signage be applied to spider crabs as well.

“The DEC said they are going to try and make a universal sign for all crabs,” shared Mowbray. “But that was two or three years ago. I call back and there are still no signs.”

Since he began frequenting the marina 11 years ago and returning the crabs to the bay, and asking local crabbers to do the same, Mowbray has seen a significant decrease in the number of crabs left to die in the sand.

“Last season, I counted six for the entire season, which is unbelievable,” shared Mowbray. “Now I am not taking credit for it. In fact, I am really concerned. I am hoping there isn’t something that is killing off the spider crabs.”

When you head to a marina or the waterside this summer, do your part to keep the spider crabs safe. Remember to practice waterside etiquette, exercise empathy, and throw spider crabs back into the water immediately.