Newport, Ore. – Oregon’s commercial Dungeness crab season is delayed coastwide until at least Dec. 16, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife announced today. Pre-season testing shows Dungeness crabs are too low in meat yield in some ocean areas and have elevated domoic acid in crab viscera (guts) in two areas on the south coast.
Targeted to open Dec. 1, Oregon’s ocean commercial Dungeness crab season can be delayed so consumers get a high-quality product and crabs are not wasted.
The commercial bay crab fishery (currently open from Cape Blanco to the Washington border) closes at 12:01 a.m. Dec. 1 in conjunction with the delayed ocean commercial season. The commercial bay crab season runs through Dec. 31 but will only reopen in December if the ocean commercial season does so.
The next round of crab meat yield and biotoxin testing will occur in the coming weeks. Results help determine if the season opens Dec. 16 or is further delayed or split into areas with different opening dates.
ODFW tests crabs out of Oregon’s six major crabbing ports in partnership with the Oregon Dungeness Crab Commission, Oregon Department of Agriculture, and the commercial Dungeness crab industry.
Weekly season opening updates are posted online until the decision to open the season is made.
During the 2023-24 season, the commercial Dungeness crab season was delayed and opened in stages due to low meat yield. Commercial fishermen landed 24.7 million pounds of crab at an ex-vessel value of $93.6 million. A history of Oregon’s commercial crab landings is available online.
The recreational ocean Dungeness crab season is slated to reopen Dec. 1 as scheduled in areas with no elevated biotoxins. Recreational crab harvesting in bays, estuaries, and on beaches, docks, piers, and jetties is currently open from Cape Blanco to the Washington border. Recreational crabbers should always call the Shellfish Hotline (800-448-2474) or visit the ODA Recreational Shellfish Biotoxin Closures webpage before crabbing.