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Virginia Administrative Code
Title 4. Conservation And Natural Resources
Agency 20. Marine Resources Commission
Chapter 900. Pertaining to Horseshoe Crab
12/26/2024

4VAC20-900-35. Monitoring requirements.

A. Any individual harvesting or landing horseshoe crabs in Virginia shall report monthly on forms provided by the Marine Resources Commission all harvests of horseshoe crabs including, but not limited to, bait fisheries, bycatch, biomedical industry, and scientific and educational research harvests. Reporting requirements shall consist of numbers and pounds landed by sex, harvest method and harvest location.

B. It shall be unlawful for any valid Horseshoe Crab Trawl Permittee, Horseshoe Crab Class A Dredge Permittee, or Horseshoe Crab Class B Dredge Permittee to fail to contact the Marine Resources Operations Station prior to offloading horseshoe crabs. The horseshoe crab permittee shall provide the Marine Resources Commission the name of the vessel and its captain and the anticipated or approximate offloading time and site. Following offloading, the horseshoe crab permittee shall contact the Marine Resources Operation Station and provide the total number of horseshoe crabs landed, gear type, and location of harvest.

C. It shall be unlawful for any valid Horseshoe Crab Pound Net Permittee, Horseshoe Crab Hand Harvest Permittee, or Horseshoe Crab General Category Permittee to fail to contact the Virginia Marine Resources Commission Interactive-Voice-Response (IVR) System within 24 hours of landing and provide his Commercial Fisherman Registration License number, and the time, date, number of horseshoe crabs landed, gear type, and location of harvest.

D. It shall be unlawful for any individual, firm, or corporation to buy any horseshoe crabs from any lawful harvester on or after July 1, 2007, without first having obtained a Horseshoe Crab Buying Permit from the Marine Resources Commission. The permit application shall be completed in full by the licensed seafood buyer, and a copy of the permit shall be kept in possession of the licensed buyer while buying or possessing horseshoe crabs.

E. Any licensed seafood buyer permitted to purchase horseshoe crabs shall provide written reports to the Marine Resources Commission of daily purchases and harvest information on forms provided by the Marine Resources Commission. Such information shall include the date of the purchase, the buyer's horseshoe crab permit number and harvester's Commercial Fisherman Registration License number, gear type used, water area fished, city or county of landing, and number of female horseshoe crabs and male horseshoe crabs purchased. These reports of any current weekly purchases shall be completed in full and submitted to the Marine Resources Commission no later than Thursday of the following week. In addition, once it has been projected and announced that 65,065 male horseshoe crabs have been landed from waters east of the COLREGS Line, each permitted buyer shall call the Marine Resources Commission's IVR on a daily basis to report his name and permit number, date, number of female horseshoe crabs and number of male horseshoe crabs purchased, gear used, and water area fished by the harvester.

F. Individuals harvesting horseshoe crabs for biomedical use and owners of facilities using horseshoe crabs for biomedical purposes shall monitor and report monthly to the Marine Resources Commission all harvests or purchases of horseshoe crabs and the percentage of mortality up to the point of release including that mortality that occurs during harvest, shipping, handling, and bleeding.

G. Owners of biomedical facilities using horseshoe crabs shall participate in the tagging program of the Marine Resources Commission to evaluate the post-release mortality of horseshoe crabs.

H. Monthly reports shall be due to the Marine Resources Commission no later than the fifth day of the following month.

Statutory Authority

§ 28.2-201 of the Code of Virginia.

Historical Notes

Derived from Virginia Register Volume 15, Issue 14, eff. March 1, 1999; amended, Virginia Register Volume 17, Issue 10, eff. January 1, 2001; Volume 23, Issue 19, eff. July 1, 2007; Volume 26, Issue 9, eff. January 1, 2010; Volume 27, Issue 19, eff. May 1, 2011; Volume 29, Issue 10, eff. January 1, 2013; Volume 30, Issue 10, eff. January 1, 2014.

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