Wanli fishermen use “crab cages” to lure and trap crab. It is the least intrusive crabbing method which is also ecologically protective to marine life. There are three funneled entrances where crab craw in in search of the lures which are fish parts stored in the lure box inside the cage. The cages sit on the bottom of the sea for more than ten hours waiting for the crab to surrender themselves before the fishermen retrieve the cages.
Since Wanli Crab can not be detected using modern technology, it has to depend on the fishermen's experiences and expertise to drop the crab cages in the big ocean. The fishermen will then wait patiently and wishing they could be fortunate enough for a good catch.
For long-term sustain, starting April, 2014, crab fishermen can only catch and sell Wanli Crab that is larger than 7cm (for Stone Crab) or 9cm (for the other two) by measuring the far-ends of the crab's back-shell. In addition, during August 1 and December 31, all hatching crab must be released to the sea. All crab caught, displayed, possessed, and sold must have their abdominal flaps intact between August 1 and December 31.
