Bibbo Mud crab
As saltwater people, the Mud Crab is an important cultural totem for our clans, and has been historically highly valued and even fought over by our ancestors.
We learn how to find them, catch them and cook them from our parents and grandparents when we’re young. They teach us how many crabs to take, as well as when to release them if they are pregnant to make sure we don’t disrupt the population.
Nowadays, we’re happy to be sharing our fresh Bibbo all around Australia, and we store them and ship them live so that you can have the freshest possible taste of one of the best native foods that we’ve enjoyed for generations.
They are harvested year round, but are most plentiful in the dry season. We harvest them from rivers and creeks around Maningrida using crab pots.
In our culture, much of our world belongs to one of two halves or moieties: Duwa and Yirridjdja.
This includes all human beings, ancestral beings, flora and fauna, natural phenomenon, sites and land – it’s all connected together. Mud Crab is classified under this system as Duwa.
Back in the old days when we used to catch a lot, we’d share it with all the neighbouring mobs, get everyone together. Now we can share it even further, in Darwin and the other cities, and make money for the community who can work on their homelands
Don Wilton