4VAC20-720-40. Open oyster harvest season, harvest areas, and harvest limits.
A. It shall be unlawful for any person to harvest oysters from public and unassigned grounds, except within the dates and areas and with the harvest gears set forth in this section.
B. It shall be unlawful to harvest clean cull oysters from the public oyster grounds and unassigned grounds, except within the seasons and areas and with the harvest gears as described in Table 1 in this subsection.
It shall be unlawful to exceed the daily individual bushel harvest limit or the daily vessel bushel limit of clean cull oysters in Table 1 in this subsection.
Table 1 Clean Cull Oyster Harvest Area, Harvest Dates, Harvest Gear, and Daily Bushel Limits | ||||
Harvest Area | Harvest Dates | Harvest Gear | Daily Individual Bushel Limit | Daily Vessel Bushel Limit |
Great Wicomico River Rotation Area 1 | January 1, 2025, through January 31, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Great Wicomico River Rotation Area 2 | December 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
James River Area 1, 2, and 3 | October 16, 2024, through March 31, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Middle Ground | March 1, 2025, through March 14, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Mobjack Bay Area | February 1, 2025, through February 28, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Piankatank River Area | March 1, 2025, through March 14, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Pocomoke Sound Area Public Ground 11 | November 1, 2024, through November 15, 2024 and February 1, 2025, through February 14, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Rappahannock River Area 7 | December 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Rappahannock River Area 8 | January 1, 2025, through January 31, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Rappahannock River Rotation Area 3 | February 1, 2025, through March 14, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Rappahannock River Rotation Area 5 | October 16, 2024, through November 30, 2024 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Upper Chesapeake Bay - Blackberry Hangs Area | February 1, 2025, through March 14, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
York River Rotation Area 1 | January 1, 2025, through January 31, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
York River Rotation Area 2 | February 1, 2025, through March 14, 2025 | Hand Scrape | 8 | 16 |
Coan River Area | October 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Corrotoman Hand Tong Area | October 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Indian Creek | October 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Great Wicomico River Hand Tong Area | October 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
James River Seed Area, including the James River Seed Area, including the Deep Water Shoal State Replenishment Seed Area | October 1, 2024, through May 30, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Little Wicomico River | October 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Milford Haven | December 1, 2024, through February 28, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Nomini Creek Area | October 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Piankatank River Hand Tong Area | March 1, 2025, through March 14, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Pocomoke Sound Area Public Ground 11 | November 16, 2024, through January 31, 2025, and February 15, 2025, through March 31, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Pocomoke Sound Hand Tong Area Public Ground 9 and 10 | November 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Rappahannock River Area 7 | October 1, 2024, through November 30, 2024, and January 1, 2025, through March 31, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Rappahannock River Area 8 | October 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024, and February 1, 2025, through March 31, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Rappahannock River Area 9 | October 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Yeocomico River Area | October 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
York River Hand Tong Area | October 16, 2024, through March 14, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
York River Rotation Area 1 | November 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024, and February 1, 2025, through March 31, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
York River Rotation Area 2 | November 1, 2024, through January 31, 2025 | Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
Hurleys Rock Area | March 1, 2025, through March 14, 2025 | Oyster Dredge | 8 | 16 |
Pocomoke Sound Rotation Area 2 | November 16, 2024, through February 14, 2025 | Oyster Dredge | 8 | 16 |
Tangier Sound Rotation Area 2 | December 1, 2024, through February 28, 2025 | Oyster Dredge | 8 | 16 |
Larsons Bay Area | October 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024 | Patent Tong | 8 | 16 |
Deep Rock Area | November 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025 | Patent Tong | 8 | 16 |
Rappahannock River Rotation Area 1 | October 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024 | Patent Tong | 8 | 16 |
Seaside Eastern Shore | November 1, 2024, through April 30, 2025 | By Hand or Hand Tong | 14 | 28 |
C. It shall be unlawful to harvest seed oysters from the public oyster grounds or unassigned grounds, except within the dates and areas and with the harvest gears described in Table 2 in this subsection.
Table 2. Seed Oyster Harvest Area, Harvest Dates, and Harvest Gear | ||
Harvest Area | Harvest Dates | Harvest Gear |
James River Seed Area, including the Deep Water Shoal State Replenishment Seed Area | October 1, 2024, through May 31, 2025 | Hand Tong |
D. In the Pocomoke and Tangier Sounds Rotation Areas, it shall be unlawful to possess on board any vessel more than 250 hard clams.
E. It shall be unlawful to possess any blue crabs on board any vessel with an oyster scrape or oyster dredge.
F. It shall be unlawful for any person or vessel to harvest clean cull oysters with more than one gear type in any single day from the public oyster grounds or unassigned grounds in the waters of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Statutory Authority
§ 28.2-201 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from VR450-01-0095 § 4, eff. October 1, 1993; amended, Virginia Register Volume 10, Issue 14, eff. February 23, 1994; Volume 11, Issue 3, eff. October 5, 1994; Volume 11, Issue 7, eff. December 1, 1994; Volume 11, Issue 16, eff. April 4, 1995; Volume 12, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 1995; Volume 13, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 1996; Volume 13, Issue 7, eff. December 1, 1996; Volume 14, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 1997; Volume 15, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 1998; Volume 15, Issue 20, eff. June 1, 1999; Volume 16, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 1999; Volume 16, Issue 12, eff. February 4, 2000; Volume 17, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 2000; Volume 18, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 2001; Volume 18, Issue 9, eff. January 1, 2002; Volume 19, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 2002; Volume 19, Issue 9, eff. December 27, 2002; Volume 20, Issue 4, eff. October 8, 2003; Volume 20, Issue 6, eff. November 1, 2003; Volume 20, Issue 10, eff. January 1, 2004; Volume 20, Issue 14, eff. March 1, 2004; Volume 21, Issue 4, eff. October 1, 2004; Volume 21, Issue 8, eff. December 1, 2004; Volume 21, Issue 14, eff. March 1, 2005; Volume 22, Issue 4, eff. October 1, 2005; Volume 22, Issue 10, eff. January 1, 2006; Volume 23, Issue 4, eff. October 1, 2006; Volume 24, Issue 4, eff. October 1, 2007; Volume 24, Issue 12, eff. February 1, 2008; Volume 25, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 2008; Volume 26, Issue 4, eff. October 1, 2009; Volume 26, Issue 14, eff. March 1, 2010; Volume 27, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 2010; Volume 28, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 2011; Volume 29, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 2012; Volume 30, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 2013; Volume 30, Issue 4, eff. November 1, 2013; Volume 31, Issue 2, eff. October 1, 2014; Volume 32, Issue 1, eff. September 1, 2015; Volume 32, Issue 4, eff. October 1, 2015; Volume 32, Issue 6, eff. November 1, 2015; Volume 32, Issue 12, eff. February 1, 2016; Volume 33, Issue 2, eff. August 31, 2016; Volume 34, Issue 2, eff. October 1, 2017; Volume 35, Issue 2, eff. October 1, 2018; Volume 35, Issue 9, eff. December 11, 2018; Volume 36, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 2019; Volume 37, Issue 2, eff. October 1, 2020; Volume 38, Issue 2, eff. October 1, 2021; Errata, 38:14 VA.R. 2113 February 28, 2022; amended, Virginia Register Volume 39, Issue 2, eff. October 1, 2022; Errata, 39:4 VA.R. 380 October 10, 2022; amended, Virginia Register Volume 39, Issue 15, eff. March 1, 2023; Volume 40, Issue 3, eff. October 1, 2023; Volume 40, Issue 13, eff. February 1, 2024; Volume 41, Issue 5, eff. October 1, 2024.