The Dungeness crab reportedly takes its name from a small fishing village on the Strait of Juan de Fuca in Washington state. It’s also known as “San Francisco Crab,” since the species has been harvested off that city since 1848. Dungeness are commonly sold live, fresh or frozen as whole “cooks” (industry shorthand for whole, cooked crab), sections, or clusters, single legs and picked meat. Dungeness are found from Santa Barbara, California, to the eastern Aleutian Islands off Alaska in the intertidal zone and to depths of over 1,000 feet. Typically, California, Oregon and Washing-ton are the largest producers, followed by Alaska. Only males with a minimum shell size of 6 1/4 inches are harvested commercially; market size averages 1 1/2 to 3 pounds. Juvenile males and females are returned alive to the sea to ensure future harvests. The crabs are caught in circular steel traps, called pots, measuring 36 to 48 inches in diameter.