Recreational Lobster Fishing

All lobsters must be measured immediately, and any undersize lobster must be released immediately into the water (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.90(c)). If you are diving for lobster, you must measure lobsters while in the water and cannot remove any undersize lobsters from the water. If you are hoop netting for lobster, you must measure lobsters immediately upon removal of your hoop net from the water. No undersize lobster may be placed in any type of receiver, bag, or any other type of container; no undersize lobster may be kept on the person or retained in any person's possession or under his or her direct control.

Any person fishing or taking lobster must carry a device that is capable of accurately measuring the size of the lobster. Although not prohibited by law, a tape measure or ruler is not recommended since there is too much room for human error in using a tape measure or ruler compared to a lobster gauge. Lobster gauges are inexpensive and readily available at bait and tackle shops in areas where lobstering is popular.

Spiny lobster may only be taken either by hand (Title 14, CCR, subsection 28.80(a)(1)) or by hoop net (Title 14, CCR, subsection28.80(b)). You cannot use any other devices to take or assist in the take of lobster, including "tickle sticks" or other similar appliances used to coax a lobster from its hiding spot. For more information on the legal gear type and specifications in the recreational fishery, please see Title 14, CCR, subsection 28.80(b)(1) in the California ocean sport fishing regulations.

The Ocean Sport Fishing Interactive Map provides a quick reference to state recreational fishing and marine protected area regulations. You may view the details about the regulations within a specific area by clicking on any area on the map. For information on health advisories and closures for spiny lobster, please see CDFW's Finfish and Shellfish Health Advisories page.

For information on local restrictions, please check with your local harbormaster.

In the recreational fishery, spiny lobsters can only be taken by hand (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.80(a)) or by hoop net (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.80(b)). Lobsters incidentally caught on hook and line while fishing for finfish cannot be taken and must be returned back into ocean waters immediately.

Unless fishing under the authorization of a Multi-Day Fishing Permit, the bag and possession limit is seven lobsters per person (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.90(b)) regardless of whether they are fresh, frozen, or otherwise preserved. For example, if you have reached the limit or already have seven lobsters at home, you cannot go out and get more lobsters until the first limit is depleted (e.g., eaten or given away).

As long as all the spiny lobsters are fully accounted for on your and your son’s Spiny Lobster Report Card and your son is in the immediate vicinity of his catch, there's nothing wrong with carrying his lobster for him.

For example, you and your son go hoop netting from a pier and have a cooler in which you place your combined spiny lobster catch. When you're done hoop netting, you carry the cooler off the pier with your son walking next to you. You are stopped by a warden to whom you show your catch and both of your cards. Because two persons with two filled-out spiny lobster report cards are present to account for two limits of spiny lobster (it was a great night for hoop netting "bugs"!), the warden can see that you are following regulations, even though only one person is carrying all the lobster.

To be "in possession" of his catch, your son needs to be in the immediate vicinity - walking down the pier with you, traveling home together in the car, etc., with the spiny lobster he caught fully accounted for on his Spiny Lobster Report Card.

A sport fishing license is not required when fishing from a public pier as defined in Title 14, CCR, Section 1.88. A list of free fishing piers and a zoomable map of pier locations is available on CDFW’s California Beach Fishing page. Even though a fishing license is not required on a public pier, all other regulations apply (including minimum size, limit, Spiny Lobster Report Card).

No. Spiny lobsters shall be kept in a whole, measurable condition, until being prepared for immediate consumption (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.90(e)).

Data collection and analysis are integral in fisheries management. The Spiny Lobster Report Card helps CDFW actively monitor fishing effort, catch levels, location, and gear types used in the recreational spiny lobster fishery.

The regulation requires all individuals have a Spiny Lobster Report Card in their possession while fishing for or taking spiny lobster (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.91(a)). This includes children under the age of 16 who are fishing for lobster or assisting with fishing or the take of spiny lobster (e.g., deploying and/or pulling hoop net, handling spiny lobster, etc.). A Spiny Lobster Report Card is not required for any person who is just observing and not helping with the fishing process in any way (e.g., deploying and/or pulling hoop net, handling spiny lobster, etc.).

For the most up-to-date information on fees, please see CDFW's Sport Fishing Licenses and Report Cards page.

A Spiny Lobster Report Card may be purchased through CDFW’s Online License Service or at any CDFW License Sales Office or License Agent(opens in new tab) (such as a local bait and tackle shop or sporting goods store).

If you have filled all the lines on your Spiny Lobster Report Card, an additional card may be purchased (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.91(d)). There is no limit to how many Spiny Lobster Report Cards you can have a season, but please remember that ALL cards need to be returned to CDFW or reported online (even if no lobsters were taken) by April 30 to avoid a non-return fee the following season.

Please carefully review and follow the instructions printed on your Spiny Lobster Report Card. Right before you enter the ocean or place a hoop net into the water to fish for spiny lobster, you must record the month, day, location, and gear code on the first available line on the card (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.91(b)). When you are either done fishing at that location or done fishing for the day, record the number of lobster(s) kept, then move to the next available line on the card. Use separate lines on the card for each location fished and each gear type used.

To avoid a non-return fee, Spiny Lobster Report Card holders must mail their cards or submit them online by April 30 after each season. CDFW recommends reporting online and saving your confirmation number, which provides verification that the report card was submitted and received by CDFW prior to the reporting deadline. If you cannot report online, drop off or mail your Spiny Lobster Report Card to:

California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Lobster Report Card
3883 Ruffin Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123

A report card returned by mail shall be postmarked by the date the report card is due.

Yes, you must have a Spiny Lobster Report Card in your possession while fishing for or taking spiny lobster (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.91(a)). If you are diving from a boat, the report card may be kept in the boat, or if you are diving from the shore, the report card may be kept within 500 yards from the point of entry.

You do not need to purchase a Spiny Lobster Report Card if you are not fishing for lobster. By the same token, if you catch spiny lobster while fishing for rock crab, you cannot keep spiny lobster if you do not have a Spiny Lobster Report Card in your possession.

You might be charged a non-return fee if your previous season’s report card was received after the April 30 reporting deadline or there is no record of receipt. If you had purchased multiple report cards, be sure to return or report each card by the April 30 deadline to avoid the non-return fee. CDFW does not have the authority to exempt the non-return fee for reports cards not received by the April 30 deadline. In lieu of the non-return fee, fishers have the option of sitting out one lobster season.

You may access your customer record at any time to view your report card status using the Online License Sales and Services website(opens in new tab).

Yes. Even if you didn’t fish for lobster or didn’t catch any lobster, you must still report lack of effort or lack of catch by the April 30 deadline to avoid the non-return fee.

No. Hoop nets cannot be deployed and used in ocean waters south of Point Arguello (Santa Barbara County) within the 24-hour period immediately prior to the start of the recreational spiny lobster season (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.80(b)(6)). Since the recreational season starts on the Friday preceding the first Wednesday in October each year, this means that hoop nets cannot be placed in the waters south of Point Arguello from 6:00 p.m. on Thursday (the day before season opens) to 5:59 p.m. on opening day.

You may use up to two hoop nets while fishing from a public pier (Title 14, CCR, subsection 28.65(b)).

Between Point Arguello (Santa Barbara County) and the United States-Mexico border, you may possess and use up to five hoop nets if you are the only person operating hoop nets on your boat; however, if there more than one hoop net operator, no more than 10 hoop nets may be possessed or deployed from your boat (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.80(b)(4)(A)). North of Point Arguello to the California-Oregon border, there is no limit on the number of hoop nets that may be possessed or deployed from your boat (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.80(b)(4)(B)).

A valid Spiny Lobster Report Card is required for any person who operates (i.e., deploys and/or pulls) a hoop net to catch lobster from your boat. If there are multiple hoop net operators, the surface buoy of any deployed hoop net must be marked with the GO ID number of at least one operator (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.80(b)). If you are a commercial passenger fishing vessel (CPFV) operator or a licensed guide, your hoop net buoys must be marked with your CPFV registration number or guide license number, respectively.

You may use tape to adhere your GO ID number to a hoop net buoy; however, your GO ID number must still be clear and legible. Please be advised that if the tape falls off the buoy or if the GO ID marking becomes otherwise not legible, you will be in violation of the marking requirements for hoop nets (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.80(b)(5)).

Both gear types (hoop net and scuba gear) may be on the kayak with you only when fishing for spiny lobster south of Yankee Point (Monterey County). Be advised that north of Yankee Point, scuba cannot be used to take any invertebrates except sea urchins, rock scallops, and crabs of the genus Cancer (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.05(d)).

Divers may be in possession of spearfishing equipment so long as possession of such equipment is otherwise lawful and is not being used to aid in the take of crustaceans (Title 14, CCR, subsection 29.80 (g)). This means that, while you can hunt for finfish using a spear, you may only catch lobsters by hand on the same dive – the use of any spearfishing equipment to take lobster is illegal.

The lobster season start and end dates were carefully chosen with spawning in mind. The season opens after the majority of lobsters have already spawned, and the season closes before the stock moves back into shallow water to repeat the cycle all over again. While it is true that a few lobsters with eggs are caught each year, the season provides more than ample protection for spawning lobsters.

A slot limit (minimum and maximum size limit) was considered and determined to provide only marginal reproductive benefits for this species. The current fishing regulations are designed to protect the spawning potential of spiny lobster. The current minimum size limit allows many lobsters to reproduce for 1 to 2 years before reaching the legal-size limit, and the seasonal closure protects individuals from harvest during the sensitive spawning period of the species. Also, a Harvest Control Rule was adopted to provide CDFW with flexibility to adjust the management approach as threats to the sustainability of the spiny lobster fishery are identified.

CDFW strives to make regulations as equitable as possible. The use of traps in the recreational spiny lobster fishery has been prohibited since 1963. The rules and regulations (including fishing gear restrictions) for recreational and commercial fishing are different due to major differences in the purpose of fishing, impacts, management, and enforcement. Recreational fishing for spiny lobster is for sport purposes as opposed to commercial fishing which is for market sale.

Fishery management is an ongoing and iterative process. CDFW is actively engaged with research partners and stakeholders to improve our understanding of spiny lobster (Panulirus interruptus) and better manage the commercial and recreational fisheries. Over the years, these efforts have accumulated into a substantial body of work.

With input from stakeholders, CDFW developed the California Spiny Lobster Fishery Management Plan (FMP) that was adopted by the California Fish and Game Commission on April 13, 2016. The FMP serves as the foundation for managing the spiny lobster fishery. More information is available on CDFW's California Spiny Lobster FMP page. In 2020, CDFW published the California Spiny Lobster Enhanced Status Report with the most up-to-date information on the species and the fisheries. In 2023, the state further refined spiny lobster fishing regulations to improve management of the fisheries.