Commercial Crab Fishing Traps in Texas

Fishermen operating with Texas commercial crabbing licenses have a variety of requirements to meet when fishing with crab traps. To ensure the safety of the devices, longevity of the crab population and health of the water, restrictions have been placed on the size, construction, and usage of crab traps and buoys.

  1. Size Restrictions

    • Crab traps used in Texas waters cannot be larger than 18 cubic feet. Legally, they must also have two escape vents, which measure at least 2 3/8 inches in diameter.

    Number

    • Texas places restrictions on the number of traps a fisherman can use to make sure the crab population is not depleted. Commercial fishermen operating with a Texas crab fishing license may not lay out any more than 200 crab traps at one time. Those with a traditional fin fishing license are limited to 20 traps at any time.

    Construction

    • To be legal in Texas, the trap needs to have two escape hatches, one in each collection chamber, which is where the crabs stay once trapped. The trap should also have what is known as a "degradable panel." Commercial fishing traps usually have some larger access point that the fisherman can use to let the crabs out once collected. Sometimes this is a hinged side of one of the walls of the trap, and sometimes it is a larger hole in the trap that is crossed with wire or twine. Texas law requires that crab fishermen only use wire or twine to secure these closures, thus making them degradable. In the event that the trap is left or lost, the crabs and fish caught will eventually be able to get free once the wire or twine gives way.

    Buoys

    • All crab traps must be marked with buoys. Texas requires that the buoys be at least 6 inches in width, height, and length, and white in color so that they can be easily seen. Although plastic bottles are often used in other states as buoys, they are illegal in Texas waters. Additionally, every buoy must be marked with the fisherman's license plate number, and the text should measure at least 2 inches high and in a contrasting color that is easy to see.

    Location Requirements

    • Texas law dictates that crab traps cannot be used in fresh waters, or within 100 feet of other crab traps when fishing in open waters. Additionally, crab traps cannot be used in a variety of public and protected waterways.

    Bait

    • Restrictions also exist on the kind of bait that can be used. No fish can be employed as bait, except for catfish. If the fisherman is using catfish, however, it must be commercial catfish specially processed for crab fishing, and the fisherman must keep documentation to prove that the catfish is commercially grown.