Recreational Razor Clam Fishery Closed in Del Norte County Due to Public Health Risk

Razor clams
CDFW photo

Northern California clammers take note! The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has closed the recreational razor clam fishery in Del Norte County as of November 9, 2023 to protect public health. The season was closed after state health agencies found that consuming recreationally harvested razor clams from the area poses a significant health risk due to domoic acid exposure.

Spiny Lobster Season Set to Open off Los Angeles and Orange Counties

California spiny lobster peers from its den
photo © Bridget Spencer, CC BY-NC 2.0

After a brief delay in the lobster season openers off Los Angeles and Orange counties, state health agencies have determined that spiny lobster no longer pose a significant threat for domoic acid exposure in those areas and have recommended opening both the recreational and commercial spiny lobster seasons.

California Spiny Lobster: Reminders and Advisories for the 2023-2024 Season

California spiny lobster
photo by A. Maguire

Get your gear and report cards ready! As announced in an earlier blog post, the recreational California spiny lobster season is set to open at 6 p.m. this Friday Sept. 29^th, 2023.

CDFW Reopens Humboldt County Razor Clam Fishery

Razor clams
CDFW photo

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has reopened Humboldt County beaches to sport clammers seeking tasty North Coast razor clams, effective Aug. 7, 2023.

CDFW reopened the fishery following a recommendation from state health agencies that eating razor clams from this area no longer poses a significant public health threat.

Don’t Eat That Razor Clam!

Razor clam
CDFW photo by J. Ray

The sport razor clam fishery closed more than two years ago in Humboldt and Del Norte counties due to harmful levels of a naturally occurring marine biotoxin, domoic acid, found in the clams. The state Department of Public Health (CDPH) has documented varying levels of toxin in the clams since the closure, but levels have not fallen low enough to reopen the sport season.

In fact, recently skyrocketing levels of domoic acid in northern California razor clams have renewed concerns among