North Coast crab season delayed due to low weight

EUREKA – For the third year in a row, northern California’s commercial crab season has been delayed, and this time it’s not due to the neurotoxin domoic acid.
The crab fishery south of Mendocino opened on schedule in mid-November.
But quality testing conducted by the California Department Of Fish And Wildlife North of Mendocino found that crab did not have sufficient size or weight to begin the season.
DFW Director Charlton Bonham said additional tests will be conducted on December 7th and delayed the opening until December 15th, but some are skeptical that it will even start then.
Crab fishermen we talked to expect low weight to push the opening back to January.
Crabber Aaron Newman Said the fishing community plans their lives around the season. Now they’ll have to wait and see how the delay will impact the bottom line.