January 11, 2023 — The key Dungeness crab harvest areas from Klipsan Beach, Washington, to Cape Falcon, Oregon, will not open until Feb. 1 because surveys found legal-sized males still lacked enough recoverable meat in their shells.
A policy group that includes the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife made the announcement late last week, The Seattle Times reported.
January 10, 2023 — The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has announced that the state’s commercial crabbing season will see a partial opening on Jan. 15 from Cape Falcon in Tillamook County to Cape Arago in Coos County.
The news comes after more than a month of delays caused by dangerously high domoic acid levels and undesirably low meat levels among Dungeness crab populations in the Western Pacific. The commercial season will open from Cape Falcon to the Washington border on Feb. 1, per the tri-state protocol agreed upon by Oregon, Washington and California, as tested crabs in the region reportedly now meet industry standards. California’s Commercial crabbing season opened statewide on Dec. 31, 2022.
Executive Director of the Oregon Dungeness Crab Commission Tim Novotny said the seasonal fishing delays aren’t ideal for the industry, but that the quality testing is crucial for maintaining consumer confidence year after year.
“Look, everyone wants to start Dec. 1,” Novotny said. “But the fishermen know that this process sets a high bar on purpose, so consumers know they’re getting the highest quality and safest product possible.”
Preferred Dec. 1 openings, which allow crabbers to set prices and get meat into markets during the holiday season, have become uncommon in recent years. The industry has seen one undelayed, coastwide opening since 2014.
January 9, 2023 — Oregon’s commercial Dungeness crab season opens Jan. 15 for much of the coast after a weekslong delay.
Oregon Fish and Wildlife initially had a targeted opening date of Dec. 1, but that was delayed after pre-season tests showed crabs had too little meat yield as well as elevated levels of domoic acid.
The state agency says commercial crabbers can begin fishing between Cape Arago near Coos Bay up to Cape Falcon near Cannon Beach, since all crabs tested within that region have passed meat and biotoxin tests. The season will open from Cape Falcon up to Washington state on Feb. 1. More info.
January 5, 2022 — A group of crabbers on the Oregon Coast is pushing back on the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s decision to continue to delay the commercial Dungeness crab season.
While the season, one of Oregon’s most valuable fisheries, is traditionally scheduled to open Dec. 1, delays — based on several different factors — have been common in recent years.
The state has postponed opening day three times this season. On Dec. 22, the state announced that the season would start no sooner than Jan. 15, citing preseason testing that showed low meat yield on the southern and northern coasts. The state also pointed to elevated domoic acid in some crab viscera.
On Tuesday, in a letter to Caren Braby, a marine resources program manager for the Department of Fish and Wildlife, over 20 crabbers — many from Newport and Garibaldi — criticized the state’s decision making and called for opening the fishery in areas where thresholds have been met.
The crabbers, who state that they all own or operate a small commercial vessel, claim that the decision to repeatedly delay the season has “caused severe hardship on multiple fronts.”
The letter points to economic losses and dangerous fishing conditions during January and February, as well as impacts to consumers and potential ecological risks.
January 4, 2022 — As previously reported, the ocean commercial Dungeness crab season remains closed until at least Jan. 15, according to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW).
As Oregon Dungeness crab fishers wait for the opening of the new season, stalled by state and federal health and safety regulations, the following has been released by members of the Oregon Dungenness crab fishers.
December 28, 2022 — California’s crab fleet starts setting half of its Dungeness gear at 8:01 a.m. Wednesday morning, preparing for a Dec. 31 season opener after six weeks of postponement while humpback whales were on the move.
The state Department of Fish and Wildlife imposed the 50 percent trap reduction as an additional caution for avoiding gear entanglements when the fishery is opened at 12:01 a.m. As has been typical during the last four years, the season opener was delayed – three times in fall 2022 – as state officials tracked whale movements and assessed potential danger.
The state’s Risk Assessment and Mitigation Program (RAMP) regulations, set in 2020, require restrictions on crab fishing when whales are on the move in fishing areas and the risk of entanglement is high.
December 10, 2022 — The start of the commercial Dungeness crab season in California has been delayed further to protect humpback whales from becoming entangled in trap and buoy lines.
The state Department of Fish and Wildlife said Wednesday that commercial crabbing will be delayed until at least Dec. 30. The situation will be reassessed on or before Dec. 22.
It’s the third delay for the start of the commercial season, which traditionally begins Nov. 15 for waters between the Mendocino county line and the border with Mexico.
December 8, 2022 — The California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced that the existing statewide closures for commercial and recreational Dungeness crab fishing off Central and Southern California will remain in effect — at least through December 30 — to protect humpback whales from becoming entangled in fishing gear.
Commercial harvest of Dungeness crab also remains delayed off Northern California’s coast due to low meat quality in crabs.
Recent aerial surveys revealed high numbers of humpback whales swimming along California’s central coast. CDFW is concerned that whales could become entangled by crab pot gear as they make their annual migration toward Mexico.
November 25, 2022 — For the fourth year in a row, the start of the commercial Dungeness crab season in California will be delayed to protect humpback whales from becoming entangled in trap and buoy lines, it was announced Monday.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced that it was delaying the start of the commercial season, which traditionally begins Nov. 15, until further notice for waters between the Mendocino county line and the border with Mexico.
Authorities first announced a delay late last month. The situation will be reassessed on or before Dec. 7 and if conditions allow commercial crabbing could be permitted on Dec. 16, the department said.
November 23, 2022 — Dungeness crab fans may find the holiday staple more difficult to find in northern California after the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) announced delays to the commercial fishing season.
According to CDFW, the commercial Dungeness crab fishery in Fishing Zones 3-6 will remain delayed due to the presence of high numbers of humpback whales and the potential for entanglement with lines and traps in this fishery.