Freshwater crayfish may not be taken for commercial purposes except in accordance with the following regulations:
(a) Licenses and Permits Required. (1) Crayfish may not be taken for commercial purposes except under a revocable, nontransferable, numbered permit issued by the department. The applicant for a permit shall submit the fees and the completed application, as specified in Section 705, to the address listed on the application. Persons taking crayfish for a fee under the authority of a scientific collector's permit do not need to have this permit.(2) Except for those taking crayfish for a fee under the authority of a scientific collector's permit, every person who takes, assists in taking, possesses or transports crayfish while on any boat or vessel, or who uses or operates or assists in using or operating any boat, trap, or other appliance to take crayfish, must have a valid crayfish permit issued to him and must be in possession of said permit while engaged in any of such activities.(3) Crayfish may not be taken for commercial purposes for human consumption except under the authority of a commercial fishing license. Commercial fishermen taking crayfish shall also comply with requirements of the Fish and Game Code relating to commercial fishing vessel registration and other applicable commercial laws.(4) Crayfish may not be taken as live bait for commercial purposes except under the authority of a live freshwater bait fish license.(5) A crayfish permit may be revoked or suspended, for a period not to exceed one year, by the commission for violation of any of the terms of the permit or provisions of law relating to the taking of crayfish by the permittee or his agent, servant, employee, or person acting under his direction and control. However, any person who has had such a permit revoked may be required by the commission to appear before it and no new permit may be issued to such person unless the commission finds that such issuance will be in the best interests of the crayfish resource.(6) The permit number of the person owning or in command of any boat used to take crayfish shall be visibly displayed on both sides of the boat in 10-inch black numbers, one-inch wide, on a white background.(b) Records. The department may require persons taking crayfish for commercial purposes to keep an accurate, complete record of daily fishing operations on forms provided by the department. If so required, the original copy of the completed forms, recording one month's fishing activity, shall be mailed to the department by the fifth day of the following month.(c) Fishing Area and Season.(1) Area: Crayfish may be taken for commercial purposes only in the following counties or portions thereof except that no crayfish shall be taken in any lake or reservoir within the county: (A) Tehama, Glenn, Butte, Colusa, Sutter, Yuba, Yolo, Sacramento, Solano, Contra Costa, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Kings, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside, San Diego and Imperial counties.(B) Nevada, Placer, El Dorado, Amador, Calaveras, Tuolumne and Mariposa counties west of Highway 49.(C) Madera, Fresno, Tulare and Kern counties west of the westerly boundaries of the National Park or National Forest lands.(2) Open Season: All year.(d) Restricted Sale. (1) Crayfish taken under the authority of a commercial license and a crayfish permit may be used only for human consumption and may not be sold, purchased or traded for any other use, except that they may be sold to a registered aquaculturist.(2) Crayfish taken under the authority of a live bait fish license shall be used only for bait purposes and shall not be sold, purchased or used for any other purpose.(e) Size Limit. (1) No live crayfish of the genus Pacifastacus less than three and five-eights inches (92mm) in length from tip of nose (acumen) to tip of tail (telson), measured in a straight line ventral side up, may be taken commercially, except an allowable percentage of unacceptable (dead or undersized) Pacifastacus in any load or lot shall not be more than 10% by number.(2) With the exception of the 10% allowable unacceptable crayfish, all other undersized Pacifastacus shall be returned unharmed to the waters from which taken. Such crayfish shall be sorted and returned immediately following processing of any trap or trap line before pulling additional traps or before returning to any dock or landing.(3) The processing plants may not possess any cooked crayfish of the genus Pacifastacus which are less than three and one-half inches (89 mm) in length from the tip of nose (acumen) to tip of tail (telson), measured in a straight line ventral side up, except an allowable percentage of undersized Pacifastacus shall not be more than 5% by number of the total crayfish received at the processing plant during the day or processing.(4) Any undersized Pacifastacus taken to the processing plant shall be returned to the water from which they were taken within twenty-four hours from the time of arrival at the processing plant. Either the processor or a commercial fisherman shall return the crayfish. Such crayfish shall be maintained alive and in good condition until they are released.(5) There is no minimum size limit on crayfish of the genus Procambarus or the genus Orconectes.(6) To determine the percentage of unacceptable crayfish of the genus Pacifastacus which are either dead and/or less than the minimum size limit fixed by this section, samples shall be taken from various portions of the load or lot and shall be measured and counted. The mean of the combined counts of all samples taken shall be used to determine the percentage of unacceptable Pacifastacus in the load or lot. Samples shall be taken in containers of not less than one gallon size approximately full of Pacifastacus. At least three such samples shall be taken from any load or lot.(f) Female Crayfish. Any female crayfish carrying eggs (berried crayfish) or young shall be returned unharmed to the water at the time the crayfish are sorted.(g) Methods of Take. Crayfish may be taken only by hand, hook and line, dip net not over six feet in greatest diameter or with a trap not over three feet in greatest dimension.(h) Trap Identification. All crayfish traps shall be permanently tagged with a visible, metal tag bearing the crayfish permit number of the fisherman. Any person pulling or raising crayfish traps bearing a permit number other than his own must have in his possession written permission to pull the traps from the person who holds the crayfish permit number identifying such traps.(i) Buoys. Each person taking crayfish for commercial purposes shall designate a trapping area with at least two buoys, one at either end of a trap line; however, the buoys do not have to be attached to the trap line. Such buoys shall be spaced not less than 200 feet, nor more than 1,200 feet apart. The upstream buoy shall be painted red and the downstream buoy white. When single traps are employed such traps shall be individually buoyed with a minimum spacing of 200 feet between traps. Buoys for single traps shall be painted yellow. Each buoy shall bear the permit number of the fisherman in a color that contrasts with that of the buoy. The permit number on the buoy shall be at least 1 1/2 inches in height and all markings shall be at least one-quarter inch in width.(j) Containers. Any container used to hold or transport live crayfish shall be vented at the bottom. The depth of crayfish in such container shall not exceed 13 inches.(k) All crayfish traps must be raised and processed at least once every 72 hours. Traps not processed within this time limit shall be considered abandoned and shall be subject to seizure by department personnel.(l) Scientific and Educational Use.(1) Each person who collects crayfish for a fee for scientific and educational purposes shall have a commercial fishing license, and each boat used for this purpose shall be registered as a commercial fishing vessel. However, if a fisherman is collecting crayfish of the genus Pacifastacus he must also have a scientific collecting permit (see section 650, title 14, CAC, for the requirements).(2) A qualified scientific supply house shall issue a market order to each fisherman before the fisherman collects crayfish. Each market order shall specify the collecting locality, and the duration of that market order. Each fisherman shall have a market order in his possession when collecting crayfish.(3) The fishing area and season fixed in subsection (c) and the minimum size limit fixed in subsection (e) of this section shall also apply to the fishermen collecting crayfish for a fee for scientific and educational purposes.Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 14, § 116
1. New section filed 6-6-75; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 75, No. 23).
2. Amendment filed 1-28-76; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 76, No. 5).
3. Amendment of subsections (a)(5) and (e) filed 3-16-77; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 77, No. 12).
4. Amendment of subsections (e)(1), (e)(2) and (h) filed 5-10-79; designated effective tenth day thereafter pursuant to section 215, Fish and Game Code (Register 79, No. 19).
5. Repealer and new section filed 10-19-81; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 81, No. 43).
6. Amendment filed 8-3-82; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 82, No. 32).
7. Amendment of subsection (d)(1) filed 9-15-83; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 83, No. 38).
8. Amendment of subsection (a) filed 4-18-91; operative 5-18-91 (Register 91, No. 21).
9. Repealer of subsections (a)(5)-(6), subsection renumbering and amendment of newly designated subsection (a)(5) filed 12-14-2007; operative 1-13-2008 (Register 2007, No. 50).
10. Amendment of subsection (a)(1) and NOTE filed 10-5-2010; operative 11-4-2010 (Register 2010, No. 41). Note: Authority cited: Sections 713, 1050 and 8491, Fish and Game Code. Reference: Sections 713, 1050, 8491 and 15101, Fish and Game Code.
1. New section filed 6-6-75; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 75, No. 23).
2. Amendment filed 1-28-76; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 76, No. 5).
3. Amendment of subsections (a)(5) and (e) filed 3-16-77; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 77, No. 12).
4. Amendment of subsections (e)(1), (e)(2) and (h) filed 5-10-79; designated effective tenth day thereafter pursuant to section 215, Fish and Game Code (Register 79, No. 19).
5. Repealer and new section filed 10-19-81; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 81, No. 43).
6. Amendment filed 8-3-82; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 82, No. 32).
7. Amendment of subsection (d)(1) filed 9-15-83; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 83, No. 38).
8. Amendment of subsection (a) filed 4-18-91; operative 5-18-91 (Register 91, No. 21).
9. Repealer of subsections (a)(5)-(6), subsection renumbering and amendment of newly designated subsection (a)(5) filed 12-14-2007; operative 1-13-2008 (Register 2007, No. 50).
10. Amendment of subsection (a)(1) and Note filed 10-5-2010; operative 11-4-2010 (Register 2010, No. 41).