Photo/Illutration A Chiba prefectural official demonstrates how recreational fishermen catch gazami crabs with lights and dip nets during the night. (Provided by the Marine Fisheries Adjustment Commission’s secretariat)

CHIBA—A prefectural commission plans to restrict crabbing for “gazami” crabs along the coast of Kisarazu, Chiba Prefecture, after overfishing mainly by non-Japanese raised concerns about the crustacean population. 

The Marine Fisheries Adjustment Commission decided to prohibit nighttime crabbing for the popular delicacy by leisure fishermen from September to November.

Though the amount caught was deemed excessive, this is not considered poaching and catching gazami crabs does not violate the Fishery Law or other regulations.

Many foreign recreational fishermen have been crabbing at low tide during the night since autumn 2023, according to the prefecture’s Marine Industries Promotion Division.

The sea off Kisarazu’s Kaneda-Ushigome district is shallow for a good distance from the shore. At low tide, tidal flats stretch toward the sea and recreational crabbers lure the crustaceans toward the shore with lights before scooping them up with dip nets.

Prefectural officials said they believe the practice caught on through social media because no crabbers were apparently seen in previous years.

The commission’s secretariat said it refrained from imposing excessive regulations.

Gazami crabs are known for their rich and sweet taste. People eat their meat, tomalley and roe alone or cook them in pasta and other dishes.

According to a local fisheries cooperative association, members who have fishing rights in the area have voluntarily refrained from catching the crabs during the night.

The association has called for prefectural regulations, calling unauthorized activity by leisure fishermen a “nuisance” and expressing concerns about a negative impact on resource control.

The Marine Fisheries Adjustment Commission conducted a survey with the association and the city, spending a total of 24 days at the site between August and December. It found up to 46 recreational fishermen visited a day.

The commission estimated that 736 fishermen entered the fishing grounds during the survey period because weather conditions allowed catching of crabs on 78 days.

Nineteen fishermen in eight groups responded to interviews. Eighty-four percent of them were Chinese, and the remainder were Vietnamese.

They all said they would eat the crabs themselves and had no intention of selling them.

The commission estimated that a total of 449 kilograms of gazami crabs were caught during the survey period based on the number caught by 10 people in four groups.

The amount represents 10 to 20 percent of annual catches by the fisheries cooperative association.

The commission unanimously decided to introduce the restrictions at a meeting on May 27 where the survey results were reported.

It intends to issue official instructions after the prefecture’s adjustment subcommittee on the use of the sea approves the proposal. The committee is made up of fishing industry officials and experts.

Specifically, recreational fishermen will be prohibited from catching three types of gazami crabs between 5 p.m. and 5 a.m. from Sept. 1 to Nov. 30.

The Marine Fisheries Adjustment Commission is a prefectural administrative commission established based on the Fishery Law and the Local Autonomy Law.

Its goal is to ensure a sustainable approach to marine resources in prefectural waters, promote comprehensive utilization of the sea and develop fisheries' production capacity.

In addition to making recommendations to the governor, the commission is authorized to make its own decisions based on the Fishery Law, such as restricting and prohibiting fishing or catching of fishery populations.

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