Tracking Dungeness crabs amid changing waters
Published onIn the Pacific Northwest, Dungeness crab is a crucial fishery that supports so many fishermen. As ocean conditions shift, researchers in Washington are working to understand how these changes impact one of the regions most valuable catches. According to a recent report by King 5 News, a team of scientists from NOAA and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is closely monitoring Dungeness crab populations in Puget Sound. Using a combination of tracking technology and environmental analysis, the researchers aim to gather critical data on how factors like ocean acidification and warming waters affect the species. The study involved tagging crabs with specialized sensors to track their movements and survival rates. Researchers are also examining how fluctuations in temperature and pH levels may impact the crabs growth and ability to thrive. We want to know if the conditions are changing in a way that could ultimately affect the ...
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West Coast Dungeness crab kicks off after rigorous testing
Published onAfter months of delays, the West Coast has officially begun the Dungeness crab season. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) opened their states coastal season after detailed test fishing and data analysis. On January 15, commercial fishermen were able to set pots in the waters from Klipsan Beach down to Cape Falcon in Oregon. According to WDFW, the season also includes the Columbia River and Willapa Bay regions, while remaining areas from Klipsan Beach to the U.S.-Canada border (Gray Harbor) will start tomorrow, February 11. Through an agreement from the 1990s, Washington, Oregon, and California are working together to aim for cooperative management of the fishery across the entire West Coast. According to Hoodline, the agreement outlines potential season openings as early as December 1, with actual dates hinging on the health and condition of the crabs, determined through careful test fishing. Biologists and scientific technicians ...
Read MoreCoastal Dungeness crab season kicks off after months of testing
Published onThe states coastal commercial Dungeness crab season is underway, following months of test fishing and data gathering by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). This years season opened Jan. 15 from Klipsan Beach on the Long Beach Peninsula south to Cape Falcon, Ore., including the Columbia River and Willapa Bay, and will start Feb. 11 from Klipsan Beach north to the U.S.-Canada border, including Grays Harbor, according to a news release from WDFW. The Washington, Oregon and California fish and wildlife departments decide season openers each year as part of a tri-state agreement signed in the 1990s to cooperatively manage the West Coast Dungeness crab fishery. Per the agreement, the season can open as early as Dec. 1, but opening dates vary and are based on test fishing to determine crab condition. Over the fall and early winter, WDFW biologists and scientific technicians collected and ...
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Oregon to open all areas for the rest of Dungeness season
Published onOregon is set to open the Northern half of the state to commercial Dungeness crab harvesting on January 15 after a new round of testing showed crabs were meeting optimal commercial harvest criteria. Initially slated to open on December 1, Oregon officials opted to delay the season due to low meat levels in preseason testing. The southern portion of the state, from Cape Falcon south to the California border,opened to commercial harvesting December 16, 2024. Washington has faced a similar delay, although Washington officials have yet to announce when its commercial Dungeness crab season will finally start. Last month, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) charged a manfor illegally harvesting Dungeness crabwhile the commercial season was delayed. To the South, California was also forced to delay its commercial Dungeness crab season due to the presence of whales, which risk being entangled in the vertical lines used by ...
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California expands pop-up gear trials
Published onCalifornia is set to double participation in a pilot program testing the use of pop-up fishing gear for harvesting Dungeness craba move that conversation groups say will lower the risk of whale entanglements in fishing gear. Nineteen commercial California Dungeness crab fishers took part in the 2024 trials, testing a variety of alternative crabbing gears that dont rely on vertical lines endangered humpback whales tend to be entangled by. While the industry has been hesitant to accept the new gear types, participants in the 2024 pilot program were quick to praise the initiative, claiming the gear was effective. The pop-ups worked, and we brought home every trap that we set! Half Moon Bay, California, crab fisher Steve Melz said in a statement put out by Guardian Ropeless Systemsone of the companies participating in the pilot. The whole test is a complete success: crabbing again in front of home ...
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Illegal harvest strikes Washington Dungeness crab fishery
Published onWhile Californias Dungeness crab fleet remains sidelined, waiting for delayed waters to open, Washington and Oregon fishermen are gearing up for their 2024-2025 seasons. Yet, commercial crabbers face another round of delays and challenges in Washington. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) recently charged a man with illegal harvesting in the North Sound, as revealed in a December 12 social media post. The man was found with 27 crabs, including 22 female Dungeness crabs and four undersized ones, all unlawfully harvested. "None were recorded on a catch record card," the WDFW noted. Its a reminder of the strict regulations in place to protect the fishery, with recreational crabbers in Puget Sound required to document their catches, shared Seafood Source. The crabs were returned to the water once officials reported the incident. For the commercial fleet, WDFW continues to emphasize its commitment to both marine sustainability and fishermens ...
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West Coast Dungeness fleets navigate changes, delays
Published onWhile Californias Dungeness crab fleet waits for delayed waters to open, Washington and Oregon fishermen have geared up for their 2024-2025 seasons under familiar pressures of conservation and commerce. With winter crabbing generally in full swing, balancing marine sustainability with vital economic returns is the focus. In Washington, the Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) emphasizes its regulatory approach to protecting marine mammals, citing updates from previous seasons as a foundation for the current year. Measures to reduce entanglement risk remain crucial, with state and tribal co-managers collaborating to meet conservation goals while supporting fishermen. WDFW published a Dungeness Crab Newsletter to go over a report of the 2023- 2024 season and new regulations for this year. Other sources have shared that the Washington Dungeness season will be delayed until the end of 2024. In Oregon, the anticipation is palpable in Newport, where boats are stacked high with ...
Read MoreWash. crabbers gearing up for Dungies
Published onILWACO Crab pots are beginning to fill area ports, a sign that the states most lucrative commercial fishery is preparing for the season ahead. "We already have 200 staged down at the dock, said commercial fisherman Florian Mumford, who will fish 600 pots this season total from theF/V Vengeance. Read more
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Alaska yard helps fishermen diversify
Published onDistinctive Finishes in Haines, Alaska, is completing work on the 34 x 11 Dab Chick, a 53-year-old crabber and gillnetter, whose owner is looking for more options. When the Dab Chick leaves Distinctive Finishes it will be set up for longlining, trolling, gillnetting and crabbing. People cant just make it on their salmon and crab fishery, says Distinctive Finishes John Schumacher. Ongoing work on the Dab Chick, originally built by Snowball Boats, includes gel coating the fish hold, moving the engine forward into the cabin, and building new hatch covers. Schumacher will be doing much of this work himself, since his assistant is off fishing. In August, Schumacher said a new Nidacore flush deck and hatch coamings were completed. The hold capacity was increased by about 3,000 lbs. Before it was maybe 3,000 lbs., now maybe 6,000 lbs., maybe 7,000 lbs., said Schumacher. Much ...
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2023 Oregon fishing: Record crab harvest among other results
Published onOregons fishing scene in 2023 was a bit of a mixed bag. While the states commercial fishing industry landed 301 million pounds of seafood, up from the previous year, the total revenue didn't quite hit the high notes of the past few years. The amount of crab harvested nearly doubled compared to 2022, but low prices kept the revenue from making this season something special for the fishermen. Salmon landings took a hit, and the pink shrimp market saw a price drop despite better landings. Overall, it was a year of contrasts, with some fisheries thriving and others struggling. The report shared by the State of Oregon Employment Department examined individual fisheries and employment in each state county. The industry landed a total of 301 million pounds, which was worth $178 million in 2023. Though it was more pounds than in 2022, it was below the average landings and ...
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Good harvest forecast for Bering Sea Dungies
Published onThe commercial season for Dungeness crab in the North Peninsula District opens May 1, and officials say this years harvest trajectory looks good. The individual pot limit for the area this year is 500 per vessel. Ethan Nichols is the groundfish and shellfish area management biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game in Dutch Harbor. He said with harvests increasing since 2020, participation in the fishery has followed. Read more
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Oregon fishermen reject offshore wind changes; tribes see ‘green colonialism’
Published onFederal energy planners say their decision authorizing offshore wind development off the Oregon coast will avoid most areas that were identified as important for commercial fishing. As finalized by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the Coos Bay wind energy area is 61,204 acres located 32 miles from shore. To the south the Brookings wind energy area is 133,808 acres, about 18 miles from shore. We will continue to work closely with Tribal governments, federal and state government agencies, ocean users, coastal communities and all interested stakeholders as we move forward with our environmental review, BOEM Director Elizabeth Klein said in announcing the decision. Federal energy planners pushed offshore wind energy areas farther off the Oregon coast, aiming to head off conflicts over fishing areas and visual impact on views from the coast. BOEM graphic. BOEMs Oregon planning met with deep skepticism from commercial fishing groups, local governments ...
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Fishing families strong in the wake of Ilwaco fire
Published onFire raced across the Ilwaco Landing dock Jan. 22, smoke covering the area like a blanket and destroying 3,700 crab pots next to the Bornstein Seafoods facility. The traps were kept on the dock days before the Dungeness crab dumping day. Its critical for fishermen to get their gear in the water on time, as most crabs are caught in the season's first weeks. The community and other crabbers rallied up and down the West Coast to find replacement gear for the fishermen who lost hundreds of pots. Some groups and businesses set up donations and other assistance to the fishing families affected to ensure fishermen made it out for the season. Rep. Marie Glusenkamp Perez, D-Wash., who represents southwest Washington in Congress visited the Port of Ilwaco last week to share what support was available to rebuild. Perez told station KMUN in Astoria If the government ...
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Commentary: Calif. crabbers face increasing obstacles
Published onCalifornians love their Dungeness crab, especially at the Thanksgiving dinner table. And historically there has been enough to go around, but this has changed in the last few years as a conflict has developed with migrating whales getting entangled in the mooring lines connecting sea floor crab traps to surface floats. Read more
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Investigation underway in Ilwaco, Wash., fire
Published onOLYMPIA, Wash. Investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives are on the ground in Ilwaco after a fire tore through a commercial fishing facility earlier in the week. The investigation is happening as the start of coastal commercial Dungeness crab season approaches. Read more
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Crab season is open, but fishermen are on the brink
Published onOn Sunday, veteran fisherman Chris Lawson learned he had lost his eldest granddaughter in a terrible crash on the Bay Bridge. The next day, he was out on his commercial fishing vessel, Seaward, setting traps on the ocean floor in preparation for the delayed start of the Dungeness crab season Thursday at 12:01 a.m. Read more
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