Puget Sound recreational shrimping season starts May 14

People in the Tacoma area will have just eight hours to set their pots when recreational shrimp season opens Saturday, while in the deep South Sound, shrimping will be open for four days.

This year’s Puget Sound shrimp fishing seasons are similar to those in 2015, although quotas are lower in some areas, said Mark O’Toole, a shellfish biologist for the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Marine Area 13 (Olympia) is one of the areas that will have a change.

“Last year, we had a higher turnout than anticipated in south Puget Sound, where we’ve typically seen very little fishing effort,” O’Toole said in a news release. “For that reason, Marine Area 13 is scheduled to be open only four days in 2016.”

Shrimping in Area 13 will be open 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, plus May 18, 21 and 31.

Marine areas 11 (Tacoma) and 10 (Seattle) will be open just 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday. In 2014, Tacoma’s waters were open for three days.

Elsewhere, the Hood Canal Shrimp District (Marine Area 12) will be open 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, and May 18, 28 and 30.

Another change is the late start to the season. All Puget Sound seasons will start one week later than normal because of extremely low tides that occurred on the first Saturday of the month.

Also known as prawns, spot shrimp are the largest shrimp in Puget Sound and can reach up to 9 inches long. Fishermen are limited to 80 spot shrimp per day. A valid 2016-17 fishing license is required to participate in the fishery.

This story was originally published May 8, 2016 at 3:40 AM with the headline "Puget Sound recreational shrimping season starts May 14."