Until now, Oregon was the only West Coast state without a recreational crab gear marking rule. Marked crab gear serves a number of purposes. Fisheries managers can easily spot which user groups are present during surveys. Another reason is to fill gaps in understanding whale entanglements. Unmarked gear doesn’t allow researchers to determine origin points of gear. This type of data could point to behavior changes, or even changes in sea currents that could help explain and prevent future entanglements.

The most important reason for the new Oregon recreational crab gear marking rule is the value of the equipment. Recreational crab gear can be a large investment for some anglers. Marking your gear may seem like a common sense thing to do. Some anglers avoided marking their gear to avoid confusion with commercial gear. The new rule ensure that if a fisheries manager, or anyone else finds your lost gear, there’s better odds of getting it back to you.

New Oregon Recreational Crab Gear Marking Rule

Effective January 1, 2020, surface buoys used to mark recreational crab gear, (pots or rings) must be marked in a visible, legible and permanent manner, with information clearly identifying the owner of the crab pots or rings. The identifying information must include the owners first and last name (or business name) and at least one of the following :

(a) Phone number;

(b) Angler Identification number;

(c) Boat name; or

(d) The vessel documentation number issued by the U.S. Coast Guard, or, for an undocumented vessel, the vessel registration number issued by the state.