4VAC20-720-40: Open oyster harvest season, harvest areas, and harvest limits

A. It shall be unlawful for any person to harvest oysters from public and unassigned grounds, except within the dates and areas and with the harvest gears set forth in this section.

B. It shall be unlawful to harvest clean cull oysters from the public oyster grounds and unassigned grounds, except within the seasons and areas and with the harvest gears as described in Table 1 in this subsection.

It shall be unlawful to exceed the daily individual bushel harvest limit or the daily vessel bushel limit of clean cull oysters in Table 1 in this subsection.

Table 1

Clean Cull Oyster Harvest Area, Harvest Dates, Harvest Gear, and Daily Bushel Limits

Harvest Area

Harvest Dates

Harvest Gear

Daily Individual Bushel Limit

Daily Vessel Bushel Limit

Great Wicomico River

Rotation Area 1

December 1, 2026, through December January 31, 2027

Hand Scrape

8

16

Great Wicomico River

Rotation Area 2

December 1, 2026,

through January 31, 2027

Hand Scrape

8

16

James River Areas 1, 2, and 3

October 15, 2026, through

February 28, 2027

Hand Scrape

8

16

Pocomoke Sound Area

Public Ground 11

February 15, 2027, through

February 28, 2027

Hand Scrape

8

16

Rappahannock River

Area 7

January 1, 2027,

through

February 14, 2027

Hand Scrape

8

16

Rappahannock River

Area 8

December 1, 2026, through January 15, 2027

Hand Scrape

8

16

Rappahannock River

Rotation Area 1

February 1, 2027, through February 28, 2027

Hand Scrape

8

16

Rappahannock River

Rotation Area 6

October 15, 2026, through November 30, 2026 and February 15, 2027, through

February 28, 2027

Hand Scrape

8

16

Upper Chesapeake Bay - Blackberry Hangs

Area

January 1, 2027,

through February 28,

2027

Hand Scrape

8

16

Corrotoman Hand

Tong Area

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Indian Creek

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

James River Seed Area, including the Deep Water Shoal State Replenishment Seed Area

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

James River Areas 1, 2, and 3

October 1, 2026, through

October 14, 2026, and

March 1, 2027, through May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Little Wicomico River

October 1, 2027, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Milford Haven

October 1, 2026,

through May 32, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Mobjack Bay Area

October 1, 2027, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Nassawadox Creek Area

October 1, 2026, through

December 31, 2026

Hand Tong

14

28

Nomini Creek ­Area

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Piankatank River Area

October 1, 2027, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Pocomoke Sound Area Public Ground 11

October 1, 2026, through

February 14, 2027, and

March 1, 2027, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Pocomoke Sound Hand

Tong Area

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Rappahannock River Area 7

March 1, 2027, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Rappahannock River Area 8

March 1, 2027, through

May 31,2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Rappahannock River

Area 9

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

White Shoal

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Yeocomico River Area

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

York River Hand Tong

Area

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

York River Rotation

Areas 1 and 2

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

14

28

Johnsons

November 15, 2026, through

November 30, 2026

Oyster Dredge

8

16

Pocomoke and Tangier Sound Rotation Area 2

December 1, 2026, through

February 28, 2027

Oyster Dredge

8

16

Deep Rock Area

November 1, 2026, through

March 31, 2027

Patent Tong

8

16

Chesapeake Bay Patent

Tong Area

October 1, 2026, through

March 31, 2027

Patent Tong

8

16

Rappahannock River Rotation Area 1

December 1, 2026, through

January 31, 2027

Patent Tong

8

16

Rappahannock River Rotation Area 7

November 1, 2026, through

November 30, 2026

Patent Tong

8

16

Seaside Eastern Shore

November 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

By Hand or

Hand Tong

14

28

C. It shall be unlawful to harvest seed oysters from the public oyster grounds or unassigned grounds, except within the dates and areas and with the harvest gears described in Table 2 in this subsection.

Table 2.

Seed Oyster Harvest Area, Harvest Dates, and Harvest Gear

Harvest Area

Harvest Dates

Harvest Gear

James River Seed Area, including the Deep Water

Shoal State Replenishment Seed Area

October 1, 2026, through

May 31, 2027

Hand Tong

D. In the Pocomoke and Tangier Sounds Rotation Areas, it shall be unlawful to possess on board any vessel more than 250 hard clams.

E. It shall be unlawful to possess any blue crabs on board any vessel with an oyster scrape or oyster dredge.

F. It shall be unlawful for any person or vessel to harvest clean cull oysters with more than one gear type in any single day from the public oyster grounds or unassigned grounds in the waters of the Commonwealth of Virginia.