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In 27 years of stone crab fishing, Fernando Lende has seen better hauls than Monday’s.

He’s also seen worse.

The Cuban native had hoped to bring in 400 pounds of the coveted claws on the first day of the season.

Instead, the small fishing boat Lende runs with his father brought in 155 pounds. But Lende wasn’t complaining – too much.

“It looks much better than last year,” he said. “Some caught a little more, some caught a little less.”

The bigger boats, which pull more traps, had yet to come in Monday afternoon at Capri Fisheries, a 35-year-old fishery on the Isle of Capri. But the smaller boats were averaging about 100 pounds of claws each. A great day of crabbing could bring up to 800 pounds per boat.

But that hasn’t happened for at least two years.

What Lende and the other fishermen will get paid depends largely on consumer demand for the catch, said Antonio Almazan, manager of Capri Fisheries.

Consumer demand also dictates the market price.

For Monday, Almazan planned to keep the wholesale price per pound of claws the same as it was at the end of last year’s season.

But that could change today, he said.

“Tomorrow I’ll make some phone calls and we’ll see how the market reacts,” Almazan said. “If at these prices I get orders and orders and orders, then the price goes up.”

Fourteen stone crab fishing boats bring their haul to the Capri Fisheries, which is owned by the Truluck’s restaurant chain. Almazan’s first priority is to sell to the restaurants. If there is any left over, he can sell the claws wholesale.

That may not happen for a while, Almazan said. As of Monday, he had orders for more than 5,000 pounds.

Seven boats bring their catches to Kelly’s Fish House, the oldest and only fishery in Naples, which has operated since about 1945.

One boat brought in 300 pounds of claws but the others averaged about 100 pounds, said Kelly Ellis, who owns and operates Kelly’s Fish House with his mother.

The windy weather could have affected the catch, said Almazan. Ideal conditions are calm days after a few days of wind, he said. But too many calm days can be bad as well. The crabs like the water to be stirred up enough to provide cover, Almazan said.

“If the water is too calm and clear, they just won’t come out. They stay buried in the sand because they fear predators,” he said. “When the water is muddier, they smell the bait and start falling into our traps.”

Boats usually travel within a 40 mile radius of the fishery. To go any farther is not economical. Most crabbers go out every day during a season, which runs from Oct. 15 to May 15, to pull traps that have been sitting for about 10 days.

Claws that are brought to the fishery must be boiled immediately. If they are put on ice or chilled before they are cooked, the meat will stick to the side of the shell. The cooked claws are chilled, weighed and separated into medium, large and jumbo groupings.

Claws within each grouping must weigh a certain amount or they can’t be sold commercially.

Bud Lamendola has been watching the crabbers come in on the docks at Capri Fisheries for about 30 years. The 81-year-old World War II veteran hangs around the docks for the excitement of a big catch, not for the fresh stone crab.

“Years ago I had so many I got sick of them,” he said.

Back then, the docks were more exciting, with crabbers bringing in between 400 and 500 pounds each per day.

Ellis and others hope those days will return.

“We watch it day by day,” Ellis said. “You don’t predict the wheat, you don’t predict corn and you don’t predict stone crabs.”