# Need info on crabbing....



## bigrick (Sep 29, 2010)

I am gonna get some traps this spring. I believe you can have 5 without a licence, but how early in the year can I put them out. Isn't the limit a 5 gallon bucket? What are the rules on useing them for bait, any info would help. Is the best place to put them on flat next to drop offs?


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## BananaTom (Feb 16, 2008)

*Recreational Blue Crabbing*

*Recreational Blue Crabbing*

As found here:
http://myfwc.com/RULESANDREGS/Saltwater_Regulations_recbluecrab.htm

Rules took effect on July 1, 2009 that established closed periods of up to 10 days in six regions of the state to identify and retrieve lost and abandoned blue crab traps from Florida waters. These rules prohibit recreational and commercial harvest of blue crabs with traps in: 



Effective January 26, 2011, the six annual 10-day regional blue crab trap harvest closures will occur every other year. NOTE: The Jan. 5-14 and Jan. 15-25 WILL take place in 2011.

All waters of the St. Johns River system from January 16-25, 2011; hereafter occurring only in even-numbered years.
All waters from the Georgia/Florida state line, excluding the St. Johns River system, south through Volusia County from August 20-29 in even-numbered years
All waters of Brevard through Palm Beach counties, excluding the St. Johns River system, from August 10-19 in even-numbered years.
All waters of Broward through Pasco Counties from July 10-19 in odd-numbered years.
All waters of Hernando through Wakulla counties including all waters of the Ochlockonee River and Bay, from July 20-29 in odd-numbered years.
All waters of Franklin County to the Florida/Alabama state line however, excluding all waters of the Ochlockonee River and Bay, from January 5-14, 2011; hereafter occurring only in odd-numbered years.
These closed seasons only apply to standard blue crab traps. The harvest of blue crabs by other gear, such as dip nets and fold-up traps, is permitted during the closures. Traps that are attached to private property such as a dock are not included in the closures. There is also an existing blue crab trap harvest closure three to nine miles offshore in the Gulf of Mexico from September 20 through October 4 each year.

Blue Crab Restrictions

Harvest of females holding eggs or sponge crabs is prohibited
No minimum or maximum size limits
Bag limit of 10 gallons of whole blue crabs per person, per day 



A recreational fishing license is required to harvest blue crabs. The shoreline exemption for anglers using a pole or line, not equipped with a fishing line retrieval mechanism, does not include anglers who use any type of gear other than hook and line. For instance, crabbers who use traps, baskets, crab nets, dip nets or landing nets will need to purchase fishing licenses. See Shoreline Fishing FAQs for more information. 

Maximum of 5 blue crab traps per person as described in the summary of blue crab trapping rules below
Dip or landing net
Drop net
A fold up trap with a volume of no more than one cubic foot
Hook and line push scrape
Trotline


Five trap maximum per person
Buoy must have a legible "R" at least two inches high, permanently affixed to it. Buoys are not required if trap is fished from a dock.
Trap shall have harvesters name and address permanently affixed to it in legible letters.
Traps must be pulled manually (not by a mechanical trap puller). Any vessel that is rigged with a trap puller will be considered a commercial vessel and the appropriate licenses will be required.
Traps must be pulled only during daylight hours.
Traps must not be placed in navigational channels of the Intracoastal waterways, or in navigational channels maintained and marked by any county, municipal, state or federal governmental agency.
No harvest allowed with any trap out of state waters (seaward of nine nautical miles from shore in the Gulf of Mexico or seaward of three nautical miles from shore in the Atlantic Ocean).
A Florida recreational fishing license is required to harvest blue crabs under the recreational fishing regulations.
Blue crab trap specifications are the same for recreational and commercial harvesters. Trap specifications may be found in Rule 68B-45.004, Florida Administrative Code. 


Female blue crabs may be harvested lawfully if they are not bearing eggs. Although it is lawful to keep non-egg bearing female blue crabs, it is a conservation practice to release them unharmed. There has been evidence that the females support the population of the species. Male crabs are capable of mating several times, but females are only able to mate once, after they mature.
If a juvenile female is harvested, there will be no chance that she will be able to reproduce. Additionally, mature females may store sperm in their bodies for several months after mating in order to spawn at a later date. If a mature female is harvested, though she may not exhibit eggs, there is no certainty that she has spawned.
Releasing female blue crabs enhances reproductive capacity and population renewal.


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