Ready to head to the sea and catch some tasty crawfish? Here’s the facts to know before you dive in from our friends at The Abaconian: 

– Crawfish season opens on the morning of August 1st and closes on March 31st in The Bahamas; no exceptions.

– All spiny lobsters caught and retained must have a minimum 5 1/2 inch tail or 3 1/4 inch carapace length

– Possession of egg bearing females is prohibited, as is removing the eggs

– Spear guns and SCUBA are prohibited for catching any fishery resource in The Bahamas

– Spearfishing within 200 yards of any shoreline in the Family Islands (e.g. Abaco) is illegal

– Air compressors (hookahs) are only acceptable for fishing use by Bahamian citizens who are: (1) holding a current Department of Marine Resources permit to do so, and (2) within depths of 30-60ft and during the dates of the open crawfish season (August 1 – March 31).

– Visiting sport fishermen (those who are not citizens or residents) are limited to a catch of 10 crawfish per vessel at any time. Sport fishermen are also prohibited from using hookah to catch any fishery resource. Sport fishermen are allowed to use spears only if it is specified on your fishing permit; make sure to request this from the relevant officer at entry.

All regulatory information has been obtained from The Bahamas Fisheries Resources (Jurisdiction and Conservation) Regulations, Ch 244, section 19 (available at laws.bahamas.gov.bs).Please direct any questions about fishing regulations or reports of poaching to your local Department of Marine Resources officer.