Dutch Harbor, Alaska--Fearing excessive deadloss of their king crab catch, Alaska crab fishermen choose to deliver their king crab catch from the recently complete Pribilof Island king crab season to local ports and at-sea processors nearer the fishing grounds instead of to processors in Dutch Harbor. The crabbers feared too many of their live crab would die due to excessively warmer surface sea water found farther south near Dutch Harbor. It is not known whether the warmer waters in the eastern Bering Sea are being caused directly by El Nino but it may be an indirect effect of the unusually good weather (generally clear skies, light winds, and calm seas) that has prevailed in the area all summer and fall. [Alaska Fishermen's Journal, Nov. 1997].--Jeff June JAJfish@aol.com

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