After Some Delay, California to Open Dungeness Crab Season

Dungeness crab will be on the Christmas menu for crustacean lovers after all.

California’s fish and wildlife managers announced late Friday that the commercial Dungeness crab fishing season will open Dec. 23 following a few weeks of delay due to concerns that migrating whales might get tangled in fishing lines and because of low-weight crabs in some areas.

The state Fish and Wildlife Department said recent aerial surveys of the Pacific Ocean waters off the coast indicate most whales have started their annual migration out of California waters to their winter breeding ground.

“Whale entanglement risk still exists, but it is low,” the department said in a statement.

The department had suggested opening the season on Dec. 16 but the Dungeness Crab Fishing Gear Working Group, which includes members of the commercial crab fleet, environmental organizations and other agencies, decided on a seven-day delay to give crabbers more time to get their gear in the water and for the whales to migrate.

“We support any additional measures the fleet or specific ports wish to take to minimize entanglements and also understand the additional hardships resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic,” the statement said.

Since 2015, all but one commercial Dungeness season has been delayed either due to domoic acid, a naturally occurring toxin that contaminates shellfish, detected in the crabs or fishing line danger to whales, the San Jose Mercury News reports.