REMINDER: Season Closed on Lobster and Kona Crab

Season closed on Lobster and Kona Crab. Graphics by Wendy Osher. Lobster image DLNR.

By Maui Now Staff

The Department of Land and Natural Resourcesreminds the public that the season for taking of spiny and slipper lobsters and Kona crabs in state waters is closed.

The closure went into effect on May 1, 2015 and remains in effect through the end of August.

Hawaiʻi Administrative Rules prohibit the taking, killing, sale or offering for sale, or possession of any ula, also known as spiny lobster and ula papapa or slipper lobster from state waters during the closed season. It is also illegal to take, possess, or sell Kona crab during the same period.

“These rules are in place to protect lobsters and Kona crabs during the summer months, which are the peak of their reproductive season, and to help ensure their populations will continue to be sustainable,” said Suzanne Case, DLNR chairperson in a department press release.

However, any commercial marine dealer may sell, or any hotel, restaurant, or other public eating house may serve spiny or slipper lobster lawfully caught during the open season by first procuring a license to do so under Hawaiʻi Administrative Rules.

During the open season catching, taking or possessing of female spiny and slipper lobsters and female Kona crab is prohibited as a result of the passage of Act 77 by the 2006 State Legislature.

Also during the open season, any spiny or slipper lobster, or Kona crab, caught with eggs must immediately be returned to the waters from which it was taken. Taking or killing of females is prohibited year round.

To determine the sex of spiny lobsters and Kona crabs the state Department of Land and Natural Resources has compiled a guideline online.  The department has also posted more information on regulations concerning these and other marine invertebrates, including minimum sizes.

To report any violation of these or other fishing regulations, the public is asked to call the Division of Conservation and
Resources Enforcement at 643-DLNR.