{"data":{"id":"us-va/4vac20-720-40","jurisdiction":"us-va","citation":"4VAC20-720-40","heading":"Open oyster harvest season, harvest areas, and harvest limits","body":"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.\n\nB. 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.\n\nIt 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.\n\nTable 1\n\nClean Cull Oyster Harvest Area, Harvest Dates, Harvest Gear, and Daily Bushel Limits\n\nHarvest Area\n\nHarvest Dates\n\nHarvest Gear\n\nDaily Individual Bushel Limit\n\nDaily Vessel Bushel Limit\n\nGreat Wicomico River Rotation Area 1\n\nDecember 1, 2025, through December 31, 2025\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nGreat Wicomico River Rotation Area 2\n\nJanuary 1, 2026, through January 31, 2026\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nJames River Areas 1, 2, and 3\n\nOctober 15, 2025, through March 31, 2026\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nMobjack Bay Area\n\nFebruary 1, 2026, through March 15, 2026\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nPiankatank River Area\n\nFebruary 1, 2026, through March 15, 2026\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nPocomoke Sound Area Public Ground 10\n\nFebruary 16, 2026, through February 28, 2026\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nRappahannock River Area 7\n\nDecember 1, 2025, through December 31, 2025\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nRappahannock River Area 8\n\nJanuary 1, 2026, through January 31, 2026\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nRappahannock River Rotation Area 2\n\nFebruary 1, 2026, through March 15, 2026\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nRappahannock River Rotation Area 4\n\nOctober 15, 2025, through November 30, 2025\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nUpper Chesapeake Bay - Blackberry Hangs Area\n\nFebruary 1, 2026, through March 15, 2026\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nWhite Shoal\n\nNovember 1, 2025, through February 28, 2026\n\nHand Scrape\n\n8\n\n16\n\nCorrotoman Hand Tong Area\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nIndian Creek\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nJames River Seed Area, including the Deep Water Shoal State Replenishment Seed Area\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through May 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nJames River Areas 1, 2, and 3\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through October 14, 2025, and April 1, 2026, through May 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nLittle Wicomico River\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through December 31, 2025\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nMilford Haven\n\nDecember 1, 2025, through February 28, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nMobjack Bay Area\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through January 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nNomini Creek ­Area\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through December 31, 2025\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nPiankatank River Area\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through January 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nPocomoke Sound Area Public Ground 10\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through February 15, 2026, and March 1, 2026, through March 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nPocomoke Sound Hand Tong Area\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nRappahannock River Area 9\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nWhite Shoal\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through October 31, 2025, and March 1, 2026, through May 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nYork River Hand Tong Area\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through March 15, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nYork River Rotation Areas 1 and 2\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through March 15, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nPocomoke and Tangier Sound Rotation Area 1\n\nDecember 1, 2025, through February 28, 2026\n\nOyster Dredge\n\n8\n\n16\n\nThorofare\n\nNovember 15, 2025, through November 30, 2025\n\nOyster Dredge\n\n8\n\n16\n\nDeep Rock Area and Chesapeake Bay Patent Tong Area\n\nNovember 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026\n\nPatent Tong\n\n8\n\n16\n\nSeaside Eastern Shore\n\nNovember 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026\n\nBy Hand or Hand Tong\n\n14\n\n28\n\nC. 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.\n\nTable 2.\n\nSeed Oyster Harvest Area, Harvest Dates, and Harvest Gear\n\nHarvest Area\n\nHarvest Dates\n\nHarvest Gear\n\nJames River Seed Area, including the Deep Water Shoal State Replenishment Seed Area\n\nOctober 1, 2025, through May 31, 2026\n\nHand Tong\n\nD. In the Pocomoke and Tangier Sounds Rotation Areas, it shall be unlawful to possess on board any vessel more than 250 hard clams.\n\nE. It shall be unlawful to possess any blue crabs on board any vessel with an oyster scrape or oyster dredge.\n\nF. 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.","path":["Title 4. Conservation And Natural Resources","Agency 20. Marine Resources Commission","Chapter 720. Pertaining to Restrictions on Oyster Harvest"],"source_url":"https://law.lis.virginia.gov/admincode/title4/agency20/chapter720/section40/","current_through":"2026 Regular Session (effective July 1, 2026)","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T04:45:38Z","sha256":"dc18d3a2eb3cf58cf8b37593b4acd49b8a88514a8d19927012f88f9e135382e2","source_id":"us-va-vac","stale":false,"prev":"us-va/4vac20-720-35","next":"us-va/4vac20-720-60"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}