By Laura Spinale Scabbarding and scalloping
It was a very windy afternoon in Florida—the first cold snap of the fall—and my dad and I were freezing on the pier at Crystal Beach near St. Petersburg. A lot of my fathers buddies crab here, so I thought wed try our luck. Crabbing – in this case blue crabbing – is one way to catch your dinner in Florida. You can also fish, or go scalloping. People who think seafood tastes better when you catch it yourself will find a lot of it in the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. I choose to start with crabs because I’ve heard and read many how-to guides that say anyone can catch a blue crab in Florida. Any idiot at all.
Blue crabs are one of the most popular seafood delicacies in Florida. Their sweet, succulent meat makes them a favorite among locals and visitors alike. If you’re looking to try your hand at catching these feisty crustaceans, you’ll need to know when blue crab season occurs in the Sunshine State.
An Overview of Blue Crab Seasons in Florida
The blue crab harvest season in Florida generally runs year-round However, there are some regulations in place, including size limits, bag limits, closed seasons, and gear restrictions that impact when and how blue crabs can be caught recreationally and commercially.
Recreational crabbers looking to trap blue crabs need to be aware of seasonal trap closures that occur in different regions of the state. These closures, which typically last 7-10 days, are designed to allow the retrieval of lost and abandoned traps from the water. The east coast sees closures during even-numbered years, while the west coast has odd-year closures.
Commercial crabbers adhere to any restrictions outlined in their individual license agreements when harvesting blue crabs There is a complete closure for traps in federal and some state Gulf waters for a 2-week period spanning late September and early October annually
Outside of these regulated closures, blue crabs can be pursued year-round if proper permits and gear requirements are followed. Their peak seasons provide the best opportunity to maximize your catch.
When is the Peak Blue Crab Season in Florida?
The blue crab population fluctuates throughout the year. Their peak seasons occur when the highest concentrations of hearty, meaty crabs are found in Florida’s waters.
On the Atlantic coast, the best blue crab fishing takes place from April through November. Late spring and early summer mark an uptick in crab activity as waters warm. The population booms in the summer months, making July and August ideal times for both recreational and commercial crabbers. September and October still produce decent catches before cooling waters send the crabs into a more dormant state.
Along the Gulf coast, April through October is considered peak crab season. As with the Atlantic side, early summer provides a jump start. August and September are hot spots for big catches. The season starts winding down in October as temperatures drop.
The winter months can still yield catches, though the crab population declines. Dips in activity occur from December through February when crabs bury into the mud and become inactive. By March, warming waters draw them out, marking the start of another bountiful season.
Within the peak months, factors like weather conditions, tides, and molting cycles impact daily crab activity. Being flexible and paying attention to crab movement will help pinpoint the best times to set your traps or drop your nets.
Prime Blue Crab Fishing Conditions
Certain conditions create a perfect storm for crab fishing. Being aware of these ideal factors can help you schedule successful crabbing trips during peak season:
-
Pre-Front and Post-Front Days – Blue crabs become more active in the 1-2 days before and after a cold front passes through. These events stir up crabs and get them on the move.
-
Incoming Tides – Crab activity increases as tide waters rise. Set traps at the start of the incoming tide to take advantage.
-
Overcast Days – Crabs don’t like intense sunlight. They’re more active on cloudy days or at night.
-
West & South Shores – These warmer shores produce more crabs in early season. North and east shores hold crabs later into fall.
-
Salinity Levels Above 20 ppt – Brackish waters with optimal salt levels are attractive to blue crabs. Rivers and passes with high salinity produce consistently.
-
Water Temperatures 70°F to 90°F – This broad temperature range holds the highest concentrations of harvestable blue crabs.
Paying attention to these productive conditions can help you maximize success. But even off days during peak season can produce nice catches of tasty crabs.
Regulations for Harvesting Blue Crabs in Florida
A variety of regulations are in place for harvesting blue crabs recreationally and commercially in Florida. Knowing the rules is key to staying legal on your crabbing adventures:
-
Permits – A saltwater fishing license is required for recreational crabbing using traps, nets or fishing lines. Commercial crabbers need specific licenses.
-
Size Limits – There is no minimum size limit for keeping blue crabs in Florida.
-
Bag Limits – Recreational crabbers are limited to 10 gallons of whole blue crabs per person per day. Commercial limits follow license agreements.
-
Closed Seasons -regional trap closures take place intermittently. A fall closure affects federal and some state Gulf waters.
-
Harvesting Egg-Bearing Females – It is illegal to keep egg-bearing female blue crabs in Florida.
-
Legal Gear – traps, dip nets, landing nets, fold up traps, trotlines, and fishing lines are approved recreational methods.
Following the rules keeps the crab population sustainable and ensures you avoid costly citations. Regulations do change periodically so staying updated is recommended.
Top Tips for Crabbing Success
Beyond fishing during peak times, the following tips can help you maximize your blue crab catches during a day on the water:
-
Use fresh bait – Chicken necks, fish carcasses, and eels make great bait. Crabs love the scent trail fresh bait creates.
-
Weight traps down – Adding weights prevents your traps from shifting once they hit bottom. This keeps the entrance open and accessible.
-
Use multiple traps – The more traps you have fishing, the higher your odds of landing crabs. Just abide by the recreational trap limit laws.
-
Pull traps frequently – Check traps every 1-2 hours if possible. Quickly cull keepers and re-bait traps to keep crabs coming.
-
Target structure – Deploy traps and nets around oyster beds, docks, bridges, seawalls and other structure that attracts crabs.
-
Watch the tides & weather – Be flexible – conditions can change quickly. Adjust plans to fish during the most favorable times.
With the right approach and timing, your chances of hauling in a bounty of delicious blue crabs in Florida are excellent. Just be sure to enjoy the experience and always abide by the regulations. Wishing you tight lines and full traps during blue crab season!
Frequency of entities:
Florida: 20
blue crab: 20
season: 12
traps: 10
waters: 7
crabs: 20
peak: 6
tides: 4
regulations: 5
commercial: 4
recreational: 5
September: 2
October: 3
April: 2
May: 0
June: 0
July: 2
August: 2
November: 1
December: 1
January: 1
February: 1
Atlantic: 3
Gulf: 5
east: 3
west: 3
north: 1
south: 1
temperature: 2
salinity: 1
structure: 1
bait: 2
tips: 1
weather: 1
trap closures: 3
limits: 3
permits: 2
legal gear: 2
spawn: 1
population: 3
molting: 1
conditions: 2
fronts: 1
sunlight: 1
licenses: 2
citations: 1
Find Your Favorite Beach
By Laura Spinale Scabbarding and scalloping
It was a very windy afternoon in Florida—the first cold snap of the fall—and my dad and I were freezing on the pier at Crystal Beach near St. Petersburg. A lot of my fathers buddies crab here, so I thought wed try our luck. Crabbing – in this case blue crabbing – is one way to catch your dinner in Florida. You can also fish, or go scalloping. People who think seafood tastes better when you catch it yourself will find a lot of it in the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. I choose to start with crabs because I’ve heard and read many how-to guides that say anyone can catch a blue crab in Florida. Any idiot at all.
To catch a blue crab in Florida
You can catch blue crabs in Florida all year, but the warmer months are when you’ll find the most of them. The crustaceans seeming willingness to climb into your trap renders the sport equally popular among locals and visitors. (In fact, enthusiasts bill crabbing as a great activity for kids. ) Im looking forward to a low-key day ending with the crabs succulent, spicy/sweet taste. First, I need to gear up. Which brings me to Wal-Mart. All the articles Ive read on crabbing have said you catch with traps or nets. You only need fishing weights (to keep nets in place on the Gulf or Atlantic floor), fishing gloves (to avoid pinching the crabs), and rope to attach your nets or traps to the dock. Of all these bits of gear, the only one I can picture fully is “rope. ” So I feel a little unnerved asking the Wal-Mart greeter where the mega-chain keeps its “crabbing stuff. ” It seems as exotic as asking, “Hey, can I grab an infusion of lambs blood here?”. “Over in sporting goods,” she says in a friendly but casual way that makes me feel like a fool. After a few confused moments in that department, I find myself surprised. I couldn’t believe I could find everything I need and how cheap it is—less than $35 to outfit two people. I called Dad immediately. “I got the nets!” I said excitedly. “I got the traps! I got the fishing gloves!” “Did you get the beer?” he asked. My dad grew up outside of Boston crabbing with his brothers. They were, in his word, crazy. The Atlantic was so cold that they would jump in and take off their T-shirts. Then they would use the shirts to pick up blue crabs. This outing is a bit more sophisticated. Ive purchased two crab nets and two pre-assembled traps. All that’s left is to tie chicken necks to the bottom of each, throw them over the dock, and tie them to the same thing. Then I’ll wait for a tug. As my quickly numbing fingers fumble with the chicken necks, I wonder whether scalloping would have been easier.
In the middle of Florida’s Big Bend, Steinhatchee is a town on the coast that doesn’t have long stretches of white-sand beaches. This has kept rampant tourism at bay, and left Steinhatchee a mecca for fishermen. During the scallop season in Florida, fishermen can be found in the brown waters of the Steinhatchee River, where they catch largemouth bass, cobia, grouper, and red snapper. Steinhatchee is best known, though, for its scallops. Where the Steinhatchee River meets the Gulf of Mexico is called Apalachee Bay, and you can buy scallops by the gallon. The meat is tender and white. July is the start of the scallop season in Florida, which runs through early September. The sport is particularly popular with families; any child who can swim can catch these creatures. Scallops usually live in water that is only three to four feet deep, but you can find them in water that is six inches to six feet deep. Still, you may find it best to hire a charter boat. Your captain will take you to the edges of turtle grass beds or to places where different kinds of grass grow together. These areas are scallop havens. Upon arrival, all you need is a net or bucket, and snorkel. Dive into the grasses, and as soon as you see the scallops—their shape is a lot like a seashell, and their brown color is striped—start grabbing them. The Steinhatchee Landing Resort has 30 Victorian- and Conch-style vacation cottages set on 35 acres of riverfront land. When you get back to the resort, you can cook your catch. (Each vacation home has a grill and an oven. ) Cleaning can be a bit tricky. Youre stuck cutting off the top shell, removing the innards and, finally, harvesting the meat. Trimming a bunch of black innards from brown-shelled mollusks isnt really for me. If I were scalloping in Steinhatchee, I would hire the kids at Sea Hag Marina to clean the scallops because they see it as a great summer job. Still, the thought of putting on a mask and snorkel and doing something to catch my dinner sounds better to me than crabbing, where all I have to do is wait for the tug on the line that means a crab has taken my chicken-neck lure. Once in a while, Dad walks from trap to trap and looks into the water to see if there is a crab caught. Sometimes, he yanks on the rope, pulling the traps out of the water for a closer look. I’m happy to yell at the seagulls, “Don’t take my chicken necks, you [expletives deleted]!” and sometimes re-bait them. I worry that the chicken necks lose their efficacy after a spell in the Gulf. I have no basis for this idea. I just believe it.
BEFORE YOU GO CRABBING IN FLORIDA…WATCH THIS! Florida Blue Crab Regulations that may SURPRISE YOU!
When is blue crab season in Florida?
In Florida, blue crab season is all year unless you’re crabbing further out than three miles from shore in the Gulf of Mexico or in federal waters. These short closures are by region—not state wide. Recreational crabbers are allowed to have up to five crab traps each, and you can catch blue crabs of any size.
When are blue crab traps closed in Florida?
Sept. 20 – Oct. 4 closed to traps in Gulf state waters beyond 3 miles and in federal waters. Special regulations apply for traps and this species when in Biscayne National Park. In an effort to identify and retrieve lost and abandoned blue crab traps from Florida, the FWC has established regional blue crab trap closures.
How many blue crabs can you eat a day in Florida?
The bag limit for blue crab in the Sunshine State is 10 gallons of whole crabs per day—and that’s for each recreational crabber. Stone crab season in Florida is October 15-May 15. The state of Florida is stricter with its stone crab season. Stone crab season opens October 15 and remains in effect through May 15.
When is stone crab season in Florida?
Stone crab season in Florida is October 15-May 15. The state of Florida is stricter with its stone crab season. Stone crab season opens October 15 and remains in effect through May 15. The minimum legal size for the claw is two and three-quarter inches, measured from the joint at the end of the claw to the tip of the shorter claw.