Tanner fishing expected to go an extra day

Commercial fishing for Tanner crab opened at noon Feb. 17 in Southeast. As of the start, there were 58 vessels registered in the fishery and 4,640 pots. Those numbers combined with the estimated amount of mature male Tanner crab this season give fishery managers an idea of how long the fishery should last. This year, fishermen should get one additional day of season length in both the popular “core” areas and in the “non-core” areas.

The season will run for six days in core areas, closing at noon on Thursday, Feb. 23. In non-core areas it will close in eleven days, at noon on Tuesday, Feb. 28.

Managers can close all of the fishery or areas of the fishery early by emergency order if concerns come up later.

State biologists estimate there will be about five million pounds of mature male Tanner crab this season, which is what the fishery targets. That’s down from the nearly 5.7 million last year but still a healthy number.