Blue Crabs — Chesapeake Bay & Its Tidal Tributaries

Season

April 1 through December 15.

Harvest Restrictions

The recreational harvest of female hard crabs or peelers is not permitted.

Time of Day

Time restrictions in rivers, creeks and tributaries:
- April and October through Dec. 15—One half hour after sunrise to sunset.
- May through September—One half hour before sunrise to sunset.
Time of day restrictions in Chesapeake Bay:
- April and October through Dec. 15—One half hour after sunrise to 5:00pm.
- May through September—One half hour before sunrise to 5:00pm.
It is illegal to set, place or fish crabbing gear prior to or after the prescribed time restrictions.
Using properly registered crab pots on private property, dip nets or handlines is permitted 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Day of Week

No recreational crabbing is allowed on Wednesdays except:

Minimum Size Limits
(measured from tip to tip of spikes)

Male Hard Crab
- April 1 to July 14 — 5 inches
- July 15 to December 15 — 5Ľ inches
Male Peeler Crab
- April 1 to July 14 — 3Ľ inches
- July 15 to December 15 — 3˝ inches
Soft Crab
- April 1 to December 15 — 3˝ inches

It is Illegal for a Recreational Crabber:

To sell crabs.
To possess an egg-bearing (sponge) crab or any female hard or peeler crab.
To set or fish a trotline, collapsible trap or crab net ring within 100 feet of another individual’s set gear.
To fish crab gear which belongs to another person.
To harvest crabs while SCUBA diving.

The Amount of Gear Allowed for Unlicensed and Licensed Recreational Crabbing
License Status	Handlines and Dip Nets	Crab Pots on Private Property	Trotline	Collapsible Traps and Net Rings	Seine	Eel Pots
Unlicensed	Unlimited	A maximum of 2 registered crab pots per property regardless of the number of owners or lessees. For additional information on registration, labeling, pot dimensions and turtle excluder devices see the Crab Pot Section.	Not Allowed	Not Allowed	Not Allowed	Not Allowed
Licensed	Unlimited		Up to 1200ft* Must have floats of the same color, size, shape on each end Floats must be marked with your DNRid	Up to 30 traps, rings or combination of both* Must be marked with a buoy bearing your DNRid unless attached to a pier, wharf or boat Traps must have a flat bottom measuring no more than 20 inches by 15 inches and have no more than four articulated sides Net rings must have a diameter less than or equal to 30 inches	Mesh cannot be greater than Ľ” Cannot exceed 50’ in width and 5’ in height Must be emptied from shore	Up to 10 eel pots for catching your own bait Must be labeled with your DNRid and may not be set in a buoy-free channel
*The amount of gear is per boat regardless of the number of licensees or individuals on board

license		Daily Creel / Possession Limit
license		Male Hard Crabs	Male Peelers, Soft crabs or combination
Unlicensed Individual	From shore From unlicensed boat From waterfront crab pots	2 dozen	1 dozen
Licensed Individual	From shore From unlicensed boat From waterfront crab pots	1 bushel	2 dozen
Boat Limits
Unlicensed BOAT	With 2 or more unlicensed	4 dozen	1 dozen
	With 1 licensee and any number of unlicensed individuals	1 bushel	2 dozen
	With 2 or more licensees and any number of unlicensed individuals	2 bushels	2 dozen
Licensed BOAT	With 1 or more unlicensed With 1 licensee With owner and any number of unlicensed individuals	1 bushel	2 dozen
Licensed BOAT	With 2 or more licensees with any number of unlicensed individuals With a licensee who is not the owner and any number of unlicensed individuals	2 bushels	2 dozen