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Crab Season's New New Reality

Isn't What You'd Expect

In case you missed it - our regular March newsletter featured this article by Mark Anderson about the shift from conventional to ropeless crab gear in California, and how some of the local fishermen are reacting to the changes.

"For at least one crab lover, it was the best Christmas ever. 

Pinch-me-fresh, straight-from-the-Monterey-Bay Dungeness crab was so plentiful that whole crabs were going for $7 down at the end of Monterey’s Municipal Wharf.

That’s not per pound, that’s the entire crustacean.

I bought as many as I had cash for—11 crabs, boiled that morning—and launched into what I remember now as “The Adventures of Crab Santa.” 

That’s where you skip the chimney but still tiptoe into the homes of family and friends while they’re at work and stack fresh crab on fridge shelves in interesting formations, like you might with gifts under the tree.

Newsflash: That was a long time ago, early 2010s style, and crab season on Monterey Bay isn’t going to be like that again..."

Dungeness Crab Task Force

March brings a couple of important updates for the Dungeness crab fishery. Nominations are now open for the 2026 Dungeness Crab Task Force (DCTF) commercial fishing elections, with seats available in the Eureka, Bodega Bay, and Half Moon Bay port complexes—permit holders have until April 24 to submit nominations. In addition, Senate Bill 1393 has been introduced in the California State Legislature, advancing several key DCTF recommendations, including extending foundational fishery regulations, creating a new fleet subaccount to support industry needs, and allowing permitted vessels to transit closed areas with crab onboard under specific conditions.

Learn more on the OPC's Dungeness Crab Task Force page HERE.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s March 2026 meeting confirmed a notably improved—but still constrained—outlook for the 2026 salmon season in Monterey Bay and across California. Forecasts show a significant rebound in Sacramento River fall-run Chinook abundance (driven largely by strong 2025 jack returns and improved freshwater conditions), supporting the potential for a limited reopening after multiple years of closures and allowing managers to develop three season alternatives that reintroduce fishing opportunity, including early openings south of Pigeon Point that affect Monterey Bay .

However, the outlook remains mixed: weak or still-rebuilding stocks—particularly Klamath River Chinook and ESA-listed components like winter-run—are expected to constrain timing, area, and total allowable catch, meaning any season will be tightly structured around conservation thresholds and likely managed with quotas and in-season adjustments .

The March alternatives reflect this balance between opportunity and protection, and the Council will use April’s meeting to select a final framework that maximizes fishing access while ensuring sufficient escapement, making it clear that 2026 will likely be a cautious, highly managed return to the fishery rather than a full-scale reopening.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s 2025 By the Numbers report highlights a year of strong overall fishing activity and continued reliance on a few high-volume fisheries, led by market squid, which dominated commercial landings by both weight and value, underscoring the sector’s dependence on coastal pelagic species. The report compiles statewide data on commercial and recreational fishing effort, landings, and economic value, alongside monitoring work such as biological sampling and fisheries surveys, providing a snapshot of how fishing pressure, participation, and management intersect across California’s marine resources. Key findings point to stable to productive commercial output in key fisheries, ongoing contributions from recreational angling to total catch and data collection, and the critical role of long-term monitoring programs in informing management decisions, reinforcing that California’s fisheries remain economically significant but closely tied to environmental variability and regulatory frameworks. 

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has released its evaluations of 10 additional petitions proposing changes to California’s Marine Protected Area (MPA) Network, part of an ongoing process initiated after the Network’s first Decadal Management Review. Of the 20 petitions submitted in 2023, five have already been approved by the California Fish and Game Commission, with the remaining tribally led proposals still under review pending guidance from the Commission’s Tribal Committee in April. The Ocean Protection Council (OPC), serving as the state’s MPA policy lead, will provide complementary policy recommendations in the coming weeks, focusing on strengthening the network’s long-term performance, climate resilience, and tribal stewardship opportunities. These evaluations and forthcoming OPC input will inform Commission discussions and decisions at a series of public meetings across the state in April and May.

A recent NOAA Fisheries report highlights a large, persistent marine heatwave that has dominated West Coast waters since mid-2025, raising ocean temperatures roughly 3–4°F above normal and rivaling past events like the “Blob” in scale and intensity. For Monterey Bay fisheries, this kind of warming can reduce ocean productivity by disrupting nutrient cycles and plankton availability—the base of the food web—leading to potential declines in salmon survival, shifts in species distribution, and increased risk of harmful algal blooms that can trigger fishery closures, particularly for shellfish. While strong coastal upwelling has so far helped maintain some localized productivity along central California, buffering impacts in areas like Monterey Bay, the overall outlook remains uncertain, with fishermen likely to see increased variability in catch, changing timing of fisheries, and continued management challenges tied to ecosystem shifts driven by these recurring heatwave conditions. 

A recent funding announcement highlighted in Monterey County Now underscores both the urgency and opportunity facing Monterey’s working waterfront, with roughly $1.9 million in federal funding allocated to begin critical repairs on Municipal Wharf II—a key commercial hub supporting wholesale seafood businesses and fishing operations. The article frames this investment within a broader pattern of long-term underinvestment and structural decline across Monterey’s wharves, which have been identified as being in poor condition after years of deferred maintenance and funding shortfalls. While the grant alone is not enough to fully address the scale of needed repairs, it represents an important step toward stabilizing essential infrastructure that underpins the region’s commercial fishing activity. For Monterey Bay fisheries, the funding signals both the fragility and importance of shore-side infrastructure—highlighting that the future viability of the industry will depend not just on stock health and management, but on sustained investment in working waterfronts that allow fishermen, processors, and seafood businesses to operate.

Pacific Fisheries Management Council Meeting

April 7-12

FGC Marine Protected Area Petitions

April 21

Santa Cruz Harbor Port Commission Meeting

April 21

Moss Landing Harbor Meeting

April 22

info@mbfishtrust.org | montereybayfisheriestrust.org