Spot shrimp seasons set for most areas of Puget Sound and populations continue to remain relatively stable Leave a reply
Contributed by Mark Yuasa
The spot shrimp fishery in Puget Sound is a highly important occasion in spring, and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) announced that those who enjoy pursuing them can make plans for a May 25 opener in most areas of Puget Sound.
“The selected dates reflect a conscious effort to offer opportunities to harvest while keeping participants distributed and reducing the chance of exceeding recreational quotas,” Katelyn Bosley, the WDFW Puget Sound crustacean biologist said in a news release.
Sport and non-tribal commercial fishermen split a ~320,000-pound spot shrimp yearly catch quota with 70% being allocated to the sport fishery. The tribal fishery also has a ~320,000-pound catch quota. In 2021, 657,165 pounds was caught by all user groups (state recreational and commercial, and Treaty tribal fisheries).
The total spot shrimp sport harvest was 236,061 pounds in 2021 and 198,023 pounds in 2020; and the non-tribal commercial take was 97,357 in 2021 and 100,001 pounds in 2020. The grand total was 333,418 in 2021 and 298,024 pounds in 2020.
In Hood Canal (Marine Area 12) spot shrimp fishing will be open May 25 and 28, June 9 and 23 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day.
South Central Puget Sound (Marine Area 11) will be open May 25 from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Central Puget Sound (Marine Area 10 outside of Elliott Bay) will be open May 25 from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. This includes Marine Area 10 west of a line from West Point to Alki Point.
Northern Puget Sound (Marine Area 9) will be open May 25 from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
The east side of Whidbey Island (Marine Areas 8-1 and 8-2) will be open May 25 and June 9 from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
In the San Juan Islands, Marine Area 7 West will be open May 25-28, June 9-11, June 23-25, and July 7-9; Marine Area 7 South will be May 25-28, and June 9-11; and Marine Area 7 East) will be open May 25-28, and June 9-11. All three areas are open during official daylight hours during each of the openers.
Discovery Bay (Marine Area 6) will be open May 25 only from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca (Marine Area 6 outside of Discovery Bay) will be open during official daylight hours on May 25-28, June 9-11, June 23-25, July 7-9, and July 21-23.
The Strait of Juan de Fuca (Marine Areas 4 and 5) will be open daily during official daylight hours beginning May 25 until further notice.
Southern Puget Sound (Marine Area 13) south of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge will remain closed for spot shrimp in 2022 but will be open sometime in early summer for other shrimp species and a depth restriction.
Elliott Bay in the heart of Seattle will remain closed in 2022. The closure was necessary since sport anglers in 2021 caught 7,448 pounds and resulted in a 4,363-pound overage (quota was 3,085 pounds).
An estimated 343 boats with an average of 3.7 anglers per boat on May 19, 2021, during a three-hour fishery, dropped 3.63 pots per boat into the briny depths of the bay and caught an average of 238.24 spot shrimp per boat. This compares to the four-hour fishery on June 11, 2020, when 333 boats averaging 3.51 pots per boat with caught an average of 260.59 spot shrimp per boat.
In all areas, the daily limit is 80 spot shrimp; with a total daily weight limit of 10 pounds (whole shrimp) all species combined. Starting this season, shrimpers who retain only spot shrimp may remove and discard the heads while in the field and before returning to shore – previously all shrimp heads were required to be retained after June 1. Shrimpers retaining any shrimp species other than spot shrimp must continue to retain the heads of all species (including spot shrimp) until finished and on shore to verify compliance with the 10-pound daily limit.
All shrimp — including spot, dock, coonstripe, and pink shrimp — can be kept as part of the daily limit. However, because only larger mesh (1 inch) traps are allowed during the announced season, most harvest will be spot shrimp.
WDFW reminds shrimpers that traps can be set one hour before official sunrise during any open period in the marine areas without specified harvest hours. This includes Marine Areas 4, 5, 6 (except for the Discovery Bay Shrimp District), 7 East, 7 South, and 7 West. Traps must be removed from the water in these same areas by one hour after sunset at the end of an open period. The start and end times for all other areas are listed above.
More spot shrimp fishing dates and times may be announced if enough quota remains after the initial fishing days are complete.
Spot shrimp are the largest – averaging 8 to 12 inches long – of more than 80 shrimp species in local marine waterways, but only seven are commonly caught by anglers. During the day, most spot shrimp are encountered at depths of 170 to 360 feet.
Here’s how sport anglers fared during the initial spot shrimp opening date(s) in 2021:
Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca (Marine Area 6) – 1,593 boats (includes fishing dates in 2021) with average of 2.69 anglers per boat averaged of 3.25 pots per boat for 159.65 spot shrimp per boat.
Discovery Bay – 112 boats with average of 3.14 anglers per boat May 19 averaged of 3.49 pots per boat for 218.62 spot shrimp per boat; and 107 boats with average of 3.09 anglers per boat May 22 averaged 3.36 pots per boat for 183.11 spot shrimp per boat.
San Juan Island (Marine Area 7 South) – 861 boats (includes fishing dates in 2021) with average of 2.99 anglers per boat averaged 3.25 pots per boat for 193.06 spot shrimp per boat.
San Juan Island (Marine Area 7 East) – 817 boats (includes fishing dates in 2021) with average of 2.99 anglers per boat averaged 3.2 pots per boat for 157.32 spot shrimp per boat.
San Juan Island (Marine Area 7 West) – 2,366 boats (includes fishing dates in 2021) with average of 3.14 anglers per boat averaged 3.1 pots per boat for 215.91 spot shrimp per boat.
Eastside of Whidbey Island (Marine Areas 8-1 and 8-2) – 673 boats with average of 3.44 anglers per boat May 19 averaged 3.47 pots per boat for 178.85 spot shrimp per boat; 234 boats with average of 3.05 anglers per boat June 2 averaged 3.34 pots per boat for 186.14 spot shrimp per boat; and 185 boats with average of 2.5 anglers per boat Aug. 11 averaged 2.01 pots per boat for 160.29 spot shrimp per boat.
Northern Puget Sound (Marine Area 9) – 329 boats with average of 3.64 anglers per boat May 19 averaged 3.49 pots per boat for 245.15 spot shrimp per boat; and 225 boats with average of 3.45 anglers per boat June 2 averaged 3.38 pots per boat for 243.58 spot shrimp per boat.
Central Puget Sound outside of Elliott Bay (Marine Area 10) – 371 boats with average of 3.00 anglers per boat May 19 averaged 3.08 pots per boat for 180.95 spot shrimp per boat.
South-central Puget Sound (Marine Area 11) – 256 boats with average of 2.97 anglers per boat May 19 averaged 3.34 pots per boat for 92.99 spot shrimp per boat; and 112 boats with average of 3.10 anglers per boat June 2 averaged 3.33 pots per boat for 161.30 spot shrimp per boat.
Hood Canal (Marine Area 12) – 1,256 boats with average of 3.52 anglers per boat May 19 averaged 3.61 pots per boat for 250.71 spot shrimp per boat; 1,588 boats with average of 3.73 anglers per boat May 22 averaged 3.67 pots per boat for 242.73 spot shrimp per boat; 1,193 boats with average of 3.36 anglers per boat June 2 averaged 3.64 pots per boat for 245.81 spot shrimp per boat; 1,163 boats with average of 3.49 anglers per boat June 5 averaged 3.57 pots per boat for 231.15 spot shrimp per boat; and 1,045 boats with average of 3.44 anglers per boat June 16 averaged 3.68 pots per boat for 251.34 spot shrimp per boat.
Note: A reminder that this information is only for the boats interviewed in 2021. The total number of boats, shrimpers, pots, and spot shrimp caught in the fishery could be higher than these numbers reflect.
(Mark Yuasa is a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Communications Consultant and longtime contributor to ESPN 710 KIRO The Outdoor Line. He also was the fishing and hunting reporter at The Seattle Times for 28 years.)