Nearly 200 Abandoned Crab Traps Lead to Multi-Year Suspensions off Del Norte Coast
California wildlife officers found 194 abandoned Dungeness crab traps near the Klamath and Smith rivers, along with reporting, tagging, and other violations.
AT A GLANCE
Fishermen: Darryl Donovan, 66, of Gilroy, and Terry Groat, 60, of Crescent City.
Abandoned traps: At least 194 combined.
Locations: Offshore near the Klamath and Smith rivers in Del Norte County.
License suspension: Two years.
Crab vessel permits: Suspended for four years.
Other violations: Included reporting failures, improperly tagged gear, and failure to service traps within required time limits.
CRESCENT CITY, Calif. — Nearly 200 abandoned Dungeness crab traps found off the Del Norte County coast have led California regulators to suspend the commercial fishing licenses and vessel permits of two fishermen.
The California Fish and Game Commission approved the suspensions during its Aug. 12-13 meeting following investigations by California Department of Fish and Wildlife officers into abandoned gear near the mouths of the Klamath and Smith rivers.
Darryl Donovan, 66, of Gilroy, and Terry Groat, 60, of Crescent City, each had their commercial fishing licenses suspended for two years and their Dungeness crab vessel permits suspended for four years.
The first investigation began after the 2023-24 commercial Dungeness crab season, when CDFW wildlife officers began looking into abandoned traps off the Klamath River.
The investigation started with a joint patrol involving CDFW’s Marine Enforcement District and a U.S. Coast Guard crew from Air Station Humboldt Bay.
Officers ultimately attributed at least 107 abandoned traps to Donovan.
CDFW said his violations also included failing to service traps within the required 96-hour period, failing to submit mandatory fishing reports, and fishing with untagged or improperly marked buoys.
Recovered Traps: Multiple Dungeness crab traps are stacked aboard a vessel during a California Department of Fish and Wildlife enforcement operation off the North Coast. California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
A separate investigation followed the 2024-25 crab season after officers found several strings of abandoned traps offshore from the mouth of the Smith River.
Those traps were linked to Groat, according to CDFW.
Wildlife officers documented 87 abandoned traps, along with violations involving untagged buoys, missed fishing reports, and failure to service the gear within the required time period.
CDFW also said Groat permitted or caused the waste of hundreds of Dungeness crabs.
The abandoned gear is more than a regulatory problem. Lost or discarded traps can continue fishing after a season ends and can pose an entanglement hazard to whales and other marine wildlife.
CDFW also warned that derelict gear can have consequences for the broader commercial fleet. Efforts to reduce risks to marine mammals can affect when crab fishing is allowed, meaning abandoned traps can contribute to restrictions that affect fishermen who comply with the rules.
California requires commercial crab fishermen to regularly service their traps and remove them when the season closes.
The Fish and Game Commission imposed the license and permit suspensions after reviewing CDFW’s findings and recommendations.
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