Crab pots

Proey · Member

Crab pots

Cupie · Guru

Picked this off WA Gov Fishing site. http://rules.fish.wa.gov.au/Species/Index/27

Looks like you can't use 'trap' style crab pots. Only those that sit flat on the bottom & if you are lucky are still on it when you haul it in. A friend of mine used to get a steady supply of them using these drop nets off his jetty. I have seen people catching them in great quantities just using a scoop & light, wading in the shallows of places like the Murray Lakes? near Mandurah.

Whether it is an offence to be in possession of illegal pots might be another issue. If they were out of sight I wouldn't expect any issues, who knows. They do have some pretty big fines for interfering with other peoples fishing gear though.

eg ..

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Illegal fishing activity

Interfering with another person's fishing gear or catch, selling recreationally caught fish and other similar offences can result in penalties of up to $400,000, imprisonment for four years and loss of boats, vehicles and equipment.

Offenders may also lose the privilege of engaging in a licensed fishing activity.

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Legal fishing gear crabs

You can legally catch crabs by:

Hand.
Wire hook hand-held blunt, wire hooks must not be capable of piercing the crab.
Drop net no wider than 1.5 metres in diameter. There is a maximum limit of 10 drop nets per person or 10 drop nets per boat, regardless of how many people are aboard. OR
Scoop net hand-held wire or plastic scoop nets must be bowl-shaped, made of rigid mesh that is not capable of entangling a crab, have an internal diameter no bigger than 375 mm and a depth of no more than 210 mm.

Diving for crabs is also permitted.

Catching crabs by any other method, including fishing nets, prawn trawls or dip nets is illegal any crab caught this way must be released.

The use or crab rakes is prohibited.

You must not catch crabs for anyone else.

-- Edited by Cupie on Thursday 31st of May 2018 10:29:10 PM

-- Edited by Cupie on Thursday 31st of May 2018 10:30:57 PM

Ger08 · Senior Member

Opera House style pots are not allowed

lizard · Veteran Member

You are not allowed to use the 'closed' pots in WA , they have to be the open type ...... you are not allowed to be within a certain distance of water with the Qld type in your possession (from memory 1 km - per fisheries officer)