Commercial Regulations for Stone Crab

STONE CRAB: Menippe mercenaria or Menippe adina

Commercial Regulations: 

*Note: Traps may be placed in the water and baited 10 days prior to the opening of the stone crab season and must be removed within five days after the close of the stone crab season.

License Requirements:

Saltwater Products License (SPL), Restricted Species Endorsement (RS) and Stone Crab Endorsement (X)

Can both stone crab claws be harvested?

Both claws of a stone crab may be harvested if they are of legal size. Although it is currently lawful to harvest both of a stone crab's claws, this practice leaves the stone crab with few alternatives to defend itself from predators. Although the crab can still obtain minimal amounts of food with no claws, having one claw (if the other one is harvested) will help the crab obtain greater amounts of food in a shorter amount of time. Stone crabs (like other crustaceans) have the ability to grow back their claws, but this process requires a large amount of energy in the form of food. The quicker the crab can obtain the energy required to molt and grow its lost claw, the sooner this renewable delicacy will have another claw to replace the missing one.

Legal Gear:

• Traps made from either wood, plastic or wire

Illegal gear:

• Cannot use any device to puncture, crush or injure the crab body.
• Live stone crabs that are not immediately returned to the water must be kept in shaded containers and kept damp. 

Trap specifications:

• Trap certificates and tags are required.
• A valid tag must be securely attached to each trap.
• Traps, buoys and vessels must display the Stone Crab Endorsement (X) number.
• Stone crab trap specifications and trap, buoy and vessel marking requirements apply. Before building a trap, please refer to 68B-45.004 Florida Administrative Code .
• Traps must be constructed of wood, plastic or wire.
• Traps must be no larger than 2 feet by 2 feet by 2 feet or a volume of 8 cubic feet with the entrance (throat) located on a horizontal side of wire traps and on the top of wood and plastic traps.
• Plastic traps must have degradable panels. 
• Wire traps must have at least three unobstructed escape rings (2 3/8 inches in diameter) located on a vertical side of the trap.
• May only be worked during daylight hours. 
• Traps are prohibited in all navigation channels of Inland Coastal Waterways or channels marked by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, the U.S. Coast Guard or state, county or local goverments.
• Pulling another person's trap without express consent of the owner and FWC Law Enforcement is prohibited. 
• No more than two stone crab endorsement numbers (X) shall be used on a single vessel.

Image Credit:Diane Rome Peebles