Anglers can start putting fishing dates on the calendar for setting their Dungeness crab post in many areas of Puget Sound.
The Dungeness crab seasons
in Marine Catch Areas east of Bonilla-Tatoosh Island boundary line (Area 4),
Sekiu (5), Port Angeles (6), east side of Whidbey Island (8-1 and 8-2) and
northern Puget Sound (9) opens July 4 through Sept. 2 (closed Tuesdays and
Wednesdays of each week).
Central Puget Sound (10)
will see a reduction in the number of days open this summer due to an overage
in the last year’s catch quota. Crabbing will be open July 4 through Aug. 3
(closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays of each week).
Hood Canal (12) north of a
line projected due east of Ayock Point will be open July 4 through Sept. 2
(closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays of each week). Areas south of Ayock Point will
not be open this summer.
In the San Juan Islands (7
South) will be open July 11 through Sept. 30 (closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays of
each week). San Juan Islands (7 North) will be open Aug. 15 through Sept. 30
(closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays of each week).
Those who hit the
waterways of Puget Sound shouldn’t expect stellar Dungeness crab prospects this
summer.
In all fisheries – sport,
tribal and non-tribal commercial – during 2018 there was 9,225,000 pounds
landed, which is down from 9,285,512 in 2017; 10,645,000 in 2016. The downward
spiral comes on the heel of a record catch in 2015 when 11.8 million pounds of
Dungeness crab was landed.
“Last year wasn’t a very
good season for Dungeness crab in Puget Sound and catches were the weakest
we’ve seen in the past decade,” said Don Velasquez, the head WDFW Puget Sound
shellfish manager.
A breakdown of the sport
catch in 2018 was 117,939 pounds in eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca (Area 6);
537,194 in San Juan Islands (Area 7); 720,417 on east side of Whidbey Island
(Areas 8-1 and 8-2); 95,678 in northern Puget Sound (Area 9); 46,788 in central
Puget Sound (Area 10); closed in south-central Puget Sound (Area 11) although
237 pounds was reportedly caught; 87,377 in Hood Canal (12); and 134 in
southern Puget Sound (Area 13).
There are certain factors
shellfish managers are attributing the decline in southern Puget Sound crab
populations with two- and three-year-old male Dungeness crab populations –
averaging 4.4 inches – missing or not detected, and four-year-old crabs –
averaging 5.4 inches – greatly reduced. Legal-size Dungeness crab are usually
five-year-old and older averaging 6 ¼ inches or more.
Extreme surface water high
temperature events in 2014 and 2015 could have played a role in the recent downtrend
of Dungeness crab. Other factors are a distant source of brood stock for larval
production and inconsistent larval advection; low dissolved oxygen levels;
ocean acidification; restricted water flow south of the Tacoma Narrows; and
excessive harvest.
To make matters worse
extremely low density of Dungeness crab could affect successful mating.
The summer — July through
September — sport fishery continues to have the highest participation level
with 88.7 percent of the yearly sport catch, according to state Fish and
Wildlife catch data.
General rules are crab
pots may not set or pulled from a vessel from one hour after official sunset to
one hour before official sunrise. All shellfish gear must be removed from the
water on closed days.
Crabbers in Puget Sound must
immediately write down their catch on record cards immediately after retaining
Dungeness crab. Separate catch record cards are issued for the summer and
winter seasons.
The daily limit in Puget
Sound is five male Dungeness crab in hard-shell condition with a minimum
carapace width of 6¼ inches. Fishermen may also keep six red rock crab of
either sex daily. Red rock crab must measure at least 5 inches. For more details,
go to https://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/shellfishing-regulations/crab.
