.07 Crab Pots

Crab pots: max 24" cube or 12"×24"×48" rectangular. Chesapeake pots need two cull rings (2-3/16" and 2-5/16"). Recreational pots need turtle excluders. Can't set before March 31. Chesapeake removal by Dec 31, coastal bays commercial by Nov 16. Recreational: max 2 pots per property, within 100 yards of shore. Commercial: max 300 pots per licensee in coastal bays (300 per boat). Chesapeake commercial: 300/600/900 tiers. Extensive area restrictions apply — check the full text for specific coordinates.

A. "Cull ring" — A device enabling undersized crab escapement: either a ring with the established inside diameter, or a square opening at least 4-1/2" × 4-1/2" covered by 2"×2" mesh with minimum four complete square meshes.

B. Structural Requirements.
(1) Standard cube crab pots cannot exceed 24 inches per side.
(2) Rectangular crab pots limited to 12" high, 24" wide, 48" long.
(3) Wire mesh, unstretched, must measure at least 1-1/2" (hard crabs) or 1" (peeler crabs) along longest axis.
(4) Chesapeake Bay pots require two cull rings — one 2-3/16" and one 2-5/16" inside diameter — on exterior side or top panels.
(5) Recreational pots require turtle reduction devices on lower chamber entrances.

C. Setting and Removal Times.
(1) Pots cannot be set before March 31.
(2) All pots removed from Chesapeake Bay and tributaries by December 31.
(3) Coastal bay removal deadlines: November 16 (commercial) or December 31 (recreational).

D. General Requirements.
(1) Recreational use limited to property owners/lessees/tenants or guests.
(2) Maximum two recreational pots per property or pier.
(3) Recreational pots within 100 yards of shore, attached to property/pier or marked.
(4) Commercial pot buoys clearly marked with licensee identification.
(5) Licensed persons with 50+ pots cannot exceed 300 pots (unless authorized for 600 or 900) in Chesapeake Bay.
(6) Coastal bay commercial: 300-pot maximum per licensee; 300-pot maximum per boat.
(7) No crabs in bait boxes.

E–K. Restricted waters and prohibited areas with extensive geographic coordinates for Upper Chesapeake Bay, Lower Western Shore, Lower Eastern Shore, Atlantic Coastal Bays, depth restrictions (min 4 feet at mean low tide), and river/channel buffer zones.

View on regs.maryland.gov