Louisiana’s Fall Shrimp Season to Close in Lake Pelto, Terrebonne and Timbalier Bays

Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Robert Barham announced today the fall shrimp season will close in state inside waters within portions of Lake Pelto, and Terrebonne and Timbalier Bays on Thursday, December 20 at sunset.

This closure includes state inside waters within the Terrebonne Basin south of 29 degrees 13 minutes 00 seconds north latitude from 90 degrees 18 minutes 00 seconds west longitude westward to 90 degrees 34 minutes 00 seconds west longitude, and those inside waters south of 29 degrees 06 minutes 00 seconds north latitude from 90 degrees 34 minutes 00 seconds west longitude westward to 90 degrees 46 minutes 00 seconds west longitude.

The fall inshore shrimp season was briefly extended in these waters, however, samples collected by LDWF biologists late last week indicate that average white shrimp size in the areas to be closed is smaller than 100 count per pound. This action protects these small white shrimp and provides increased opportunity for growth to larger, more valuable sizes.

Following this closure, shrimping in state inside waters will ONLY be allowed in:

• State inside waters east of the Mississippi River from the Mississippi/Louisiana state line southward to the eastern shore of South Pass of the Mississippi River.

Shrimping in state outside waters will ONLY be allowed in:

• The portion of state outside waters, south of the Inside/Outside Shrimp Line as described in LA R.S. 56:495 seaward a distance of three nautical miles, from the Atchafalaya River Ship Channel at Eugene Island as delineated by the Channel red buoy linewestward to the western shore of Freshwater Bayou Canal at 92 degrees 18 minutes 33 seconds west longitudewhich will close to shrimping on Monday, January 7.

• All state outside waters east of the northwest shore of Caillou Boca as well as state outside waters west of Freshwater Bayou Canal and fishery jurisdiction waters claimed by the state beyond the three nautical mile closure zone.

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries – Enforcement Division(LDWF) is the fish & game regulatory agency of Louisiana. It has jurisdictionanywhere in the state, and in state territorial waters. The agency enforces both state and federal laws dealing with hunting, fishing, and boating safety. The agency also enforces criminal laws in rural areas including DWI enforcement both on highways and waterways. Most of the Department’s Wildlife Agents also carry Federal law enforcement commissions issued from the United States Department of the Interior - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Department of Commerce - U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These federal commissions allow these state officers to enforce federal migratory waterfowl laws and federal marine fisheries laws in state and federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. Besides their traditional role as a “game warden”, Louisiana Wildlife Enforcement Agents also have a number of other responsibilities, including conducting board of health inspections on some portions of the state’s commercial fishing industry. Agents are trained in and conduct numerous search and rescue operations, both in remote land areas and on the state’s waterways. Agents ensure that hunters, anglers, boaters, dealers, breeders, farmers, and transporters are in compliance with regulations governing equipment, quotas, licenses, and registrations. Agents also assist other State departments and law enforcement agencies in the coordination of educational and professional endeavors, as well as national and state emergency alerts by the Federal Office of Emergency Preparedness. In addition, agents perform search and rescue missions alone or in conjunction with other local, state, and federal agencies.