Belize Stone Crab Season Opens: What You Need to Know

The Florida Stone Crab fishing season opens on October 1st, 2024, and ends on June 30th, 2025.

The Belize Fisheries Department reminded fishermen to adhere to regulations, including obtaining fishing licenses and using traps with escape gaps and biodegradable panels for stone crab. “A person who intends to fish or export stone crab shall apply to the Fisheries Administrator for a stone crab fishing or export license,” the department said. 

Key regulations include the requirement for traps to have an escape gap of at least 2 3/8 inches and a biodegradable panel. The department also prohibits fishing, selling, or possessing stone crab from July 1 to September 30, although licensed fishers may set traps from September 15 without harvesting.

Restrictions are in place for the size of claws, which must measure at least 3 inches in length, and the retention of whole stone crabs is not allowed. Fishermen must also release any caught crabs immediately after claw removal. 

The department emphasised, “No person shall fish for the stone crab unless equipped with a ruler or calliper on-board the vessel.”