Saving Seafood

CALIFORNIA: Commercial crabbing continues as Calif. expands trap restrictions

May 20, 2026 — California officials are expanding recreational crab trap restrictions along part of the state’s coast as humpback whales return to state waters, while commercial Dungeness crab fishing opportunities will remain open in some areas under existing management measures.

According to a May 15 announcement from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), recreational crab traps will be prohibited in Fishing Zone 3, stretching from the Sonoma/Mendocino County line south to Pigeon Point, beginning at 6 p.m. on May 22. The move is intended to reduce the risk of whale entanglements under California’s Risk Assessment and Mitigation Program (RAMP).

CDFW said recreational take of Dungeness crab by other methods, including hoop nets and crab snares, will still be allowed through the close of the season. Existing recreational crab trap prohibitions in Fishing Zones 4 and 5 will also remain in effect.

Commercial opportunities continue in other portions of the fishery, though restrictions remain in place. In Northern California’s Fishing Zones 1 and 2, the commercial fleet continues operating under a 15% gear reduction and 30-fathom depth constraint. Fishing Zone 3 closed to standard commercial gear on April 30, but approved alternative “pop-up” gear remains authorized.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

CALIFORNIA: San Francisco tech billionaire pushes to restore Dungeness crab season for Thanksgiving

May 4, 2026 — A San Francisco tech billionaire is leading an effort to bring back local crab in time for Thanksgiving, arguing the issue is about more than tradition. He said it’s also about supporting struggling fishermen and finding a better balance with marine life protections.

Chris Larsen, co-founder of Ripple and head of the Clean Break Fund, is pushing for changes to the way California manages its commercial Dungeness crab season. In recent years, the season has been delayed from its traditional mid-November start to as late as January in an effort to reduce whale entanglements, cutting into what fishermen say is their most profitable time of year.

For fishermen like Casey Crowl, the shorter season has taken a toll.

“It’s a reduction. It means that you’ve got to just work that much harder,” Crowl said.

Read the full article at CBS News

A crypto billionaire is taking up the fight to bring crab back for Thanksgiving

May 1, 2026 — Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen is leading an effort to extend the Northern California crabbing season that has steadily shrunk over the past six years, taking up the cause of fishermen who claim their industry has been dying in the face of regulations meant to protect migrating whales.

State regulators implemented a system known as RAMP in 2020 that automatically delays or closes the commercial Dungeness crab season when humpback whale sightings or entanglements in crab gear reach a set threshold. Since then, the season — which once ran from November through summer — has largely been pushed to a January start, with closures arriving in spring.

For years, local fishermen have bemoaned what they claim(opens in new tab) is a blunt-force approach. Larsen is launching an initiative to expand the commercial crabbing season with the aid of a dedicated legal team so local fishermen can again start crabbing as early as November.

Read the full article at The San Fransisco Standard

CALIFORNIA: Calif. expands pop-up gear, closes Zone 3 crab fishery

April 21, 2026 — California fishery managers are tightening restrictions on the commercial Dungeness crab fleet as whale entanglement risk rises along the coast, while also expanding the use of alternative gear.

California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) director Meghan Hertel announced new actions under the state’s Risk Assessment Mitigation Program (RAMP), targeting Fishing Zone 1 through 3, spanning from the California/ Oregon border south to Pigeon Point.

Read the full article at National Fisherman

CALIFORNIA: California Dungeness crab fishery opens to use of pop-up gear

March 17, 2026 — Use of conventional traps for commercial harvesting of Dungeness crab must cease in southern California on March 27, but fishermen may continue operating through the rest of the season using pop-up gear.

The March 13 announcement from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) for fishing zones 4 and 5 was the department’s first ever on the use of the recently approved pop-up gear, with buoys and lines remaining coiled on the seafloor. The announcement covers all fishing grounds south of Pigeon Point, including Monterey Bay and Morro Bay.

When commercial fishermen are ready to retrieve their gear, a remote signal triggers the release of the buoy, which carries the line to the surface, allowing commercial crabbers to locate the trap for quick removal.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Gear lending library helps Dungeness crabbers go ropeless

February 19, 2026 — California Fish and Wildlife’s Risk Assessment and Mitigation Program (RAMP) is working to reduce marine mammal entanglements and is allowing fishermen willing to use ropeless gear a chance to keep fishing in areas where whales congregate after April 1.

Getting fishermen to try new things, particularly very expensive things, has never been easy, but the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation has been making strides in convincing Dungeness crab fishermen to try pop-up gear through its Innovative Gear Lending Library. “We’ve been working with fishermen experimenting with different systems since 2021, but most testing didn’t really get going until we were issued an EFP in 2023.” says gear innovations manager, Greg Wells. “We started with a grant from the California government’s Ocean Protection Council that allowed us to buy some of these systems,” says Wells. “Our job has been to support testing while reducing the financial burden on fishermen and gathering data and feedback.”

Read the full article at National Fisherman

CALIFORNIA: Humboldt County crab season begins after delay, but whale entanglement could cut it short

February 17, 2026 — Commercial Dungeness crab fishermen off the Humboldt County coast are finally entering the first couple of weeks of the season after a delay pushed the start into January. The delay was tied to high levels of domoic acid, after problems were identified during preseason testing back in September in Northern California.

“We started to see a domoic acid problem during our pre-season testing in Northern California as early as late September. It impacted the recreational fishery, which began on November 1st,” said California Department of Fish and Wildlife Environmental Scientist Christy Juhasz.

Read the full article at KRCR

CALIFORNIA: California approves pop-up gear as “alternative gear” for commercial crabbers

February 9, 2026 — Commercial crabbers in California’s Dungeness crab fishery can now use pop-up, or ropeless, gear to continue fishing, even after a fishing area is closed.

“Pop-up gear gives us fishermen the ability to harvest Dungeness crab for the public while the whales and turtles are present,” said Stephen Melz, a commercial Dungeness crab fisher who helped test pop-up gear in the state’s fishery last year. “It is an amazing way that technology and the spirit of innovation have come together to bring back fishing opportunity!”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Crab prices may rise during the holidays due to delayed season

December 18, 2025 — Delays in California’s Dungeness crab season are continuing to impact Humboldt County and other parts of Northern California as state wildlife officials conduct safety testing for domoic acid, a naturally occurring toxin that can accumulate in shellfish.

While much of Humboldt County remains closed to crabbing, the ripple effects of the delay are already being felt across the state. With local crab limited or unavailable in several regions, seafood markets are turning to out-of-state supply, driving prices higher during what is typically one of the busiest times of year.

The delays stem from elevated levels of domoic acid detected during preseason testing conducted by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Domoic acid is a neurotoxin produced by certain types of marine algae and can build up in shellfish under specific ocean conditions.

“Domoic acid is produced by a naturally occurring single-celled marine alga,” said Christy Juhasz, a senior environmental scientist specialist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Marine Region. “Under certain ocean conditions, that alga can proliferate and release this toxin into the water.”

Read the full article at KRCR

CALIFORNIA: New generation of San Francisco crab fishermen await upcoming Dungeness season

November 25, 2025 — Bay Area commercial crab fishermen are waiting for another assessment in December to get a better idea of when they’ll get the green light to harvest Dungeness crab.

Years of shortened seasons have led many to leave the industry. But that’s not stopping some younger generation fishermen.

Just one fishing boat is docked at Pier 45 in San Francisco, with its crew unloading their catch.

It will be another late night for Jonathan Tin and best friend Hunter Nguyen. They haven’t slept much lately, with most of their days and nights at sea.

“We just love it. There’s nothing else like it, going out there,” said Tin.

Read the full article at CBS News