Today, the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission announced the 2013 fall inshore shrimp season.
The season will open as follows:
6 a.m., Monday August 12 - inside waters from the western shore of the Atchafalaya River and the Atchafalaya River Ship Channel westward to the Louisiana/Texas state line
6 p.m., Monday, August 12 - state inside waters east of the Atchafalaya River
The Commission set the season based on recommendations presented by Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries biologists and comments from the public. However, certain areas are still closed to commercial fishing and certain recreational fishing activities due to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Maps of the areas that remain closed to recreational and commercial fishing are posted to the LDWF website at www.wlf.louisiana.gov/oilspill.
Preliminary Louisiana shrimp landings statistics provided by NOAA Fisheries Service indicate that approximately 26.1 million pounds of shrimp (all species combined/heads-off weight) were landed in Louisiana from January through May, 2013.
For a map detailing today's actions click here:
The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is charged with managing and protecting Louisiana's abundant natural resources. For more information, visit us at www.wlf.louisiana.gov, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ldwffb, or follow us on Twitter @LDWF.