California Outdoors Q&A

Featured in photo: CDFW Environmental Scientist Ed Roberts
Photo credit: E.W. Roberts IV

Crab traps

Q: Are recreational crab traps allowed to be fished once Dungeness crab season ends?

A: The Dungeness crab recreational season will close statewide Saturday, July 30. Once the season ends, crab traps to take crabs other than Dungeness are allowed north of Pt. Arguello (Santa Barbara County) to the Oregon state line.

As a reminder, the crab trap rules that went into effect November 1, 2021, would still apply and can be found on this flyer (PDF).

We also have some useful FAQs regarding these new crab trap rules.

Stay tuned in October for notices regarding the use of crab traps prior to the start of the 2022-23 Dungeness crab season currently scheduled for Saturday, November 5, 2022.

Nesting birds

Q: How do I protect nesting birds while pruning or removing trees and vegetation in my yard?

A: To protect nesting birds, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) recommends working in your yard outside of nesting bird season which for many bird species in California is February through August. However, nesting season can vary based on location and species of bird, and in some parts of the state, birds nest year-round. If you must work when birds could be nesting, consider hiring a consulting biologist to conduct a nesting bird survey before doing any work. If nesting birds are present, a biologist can recommend an appropriate buffer area where you can refrain from doing yardwork. You could also delay your yardwork until nesting is complete.

CDFW genuinely appreciates you thinking of nesting birds while managing trees and plants in your yard. Many California birds do nest in backyard trees, bushes and even on the ground. Nesting birds are particularly sensitive to human disturbance and may abandon their nest, eggs and/or young due to human presence and noise. Additionally, pruning or removing vegetation can inadvertently crush, destroy or remove active bird nests.

The California Fish and Game Code (FGC) contains several sections outlining protections for birds, their eggs and nests. FGC section 3503 covers unlawful take, possession or needless destruction of nests or eggs of any bird. FGC section 3503.5 covers unlawful take, possession or destruction of birds of prey or their nests or eggs. FGC Section 3513 covers unlawful take of any migratory nongame bird. In addition, the California Endangered Species Act, beginning at FGC section 2050, prohibits take of threatened or endangered birds. Nesting birds may also be protected under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the federal Endangered Species Act.

Coyotes

Q: What can I do to scare aggressive coyotes away from my property? My neighbor told me it is illegal to do much of anything to haze them away.

A: A great place to start is CDFW’s Keep Me Wild: Coyotes web page, which has lots of good information on how to prevent coyotes from being attracted to your property in the first place. CDFW also helped produce this short video about living with coyotes. CDFW’s goal, and an important part of our mission, is to help people and wildlife coexist — and that includes native predators like coyotes. Coyotes occupy an extremely important niche in our ecosystem. They help keep rodents under control and regularly scavenge carrion (remains of dead animals), which helps keep neighborhoods clean. In California, people can legally haze coyotes away from themselves or their property if approached. We recommend standing tall and shouting aggressively at an approaching coyote or one that is too close for comfort. Using an airhorn, whistle or shaking a can with small stones or coins can also scare a coyote away. Remember to remain calm and slowly back away from the coyote, but do not run. California FGC section 4152 does allow landowners or tenants to lethally remove coyotes that pose a risk to public safety or cause property damage, but actions must comply with all local and state laws, including county or city prohibitions on the discharge of a firearm. Also see FGC section 4004 and California Code of Regulations, Title 14, section 465.5. If there is an immediate danger to public safety, or if a coyote has bitten or scratched a human, please take whatever measures are necessary to get to a safe location and call 911.

Crabbing regulations

Q: I have a few questions about the new trap regulations for recreational crabbing that took effect on November 1. Why the new regulations? Where can I find information about the new requirements for marker buoys, main buoys and validations?

A: We appreciate your interest in keeping up to date on recreational crabbing regulations. The new regulations are spelled out in California Code of Regulations (CCR), Title 14, sections 29.80 and 29.85. They were adopted to address entanglement risk in the recreational fishery and to minimize interaction potential with protected whales and sea turtles. The regulations establish a validation stamp requirement, trap limit, trap service interval, new trap marking requirements, and new authority for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to temporarily limit the use of crab traps in times of increased entanglement risk. A full background report and rationale is available on the California Fish and Game Commission’s website. You can find answers to the most commonly asked questions about the new regulations on our crab fishery web page.

Hunter education

Q: I was looking for information about hunting wild pigs in California and came across a YouTube video with wildlife officers providing just the information I needed! Are there other videos like this and if so, where can I find them?

A: It sounds like you watched a recording of CDFW’s Advanced Hunter Education (AHE) webinar titled “Wild Pig Hunting on Public Lands.” This webinar is one in a series of CDFW Advanced Hunter Education webinars which launched about a year ago. Each webinar is about an hour long and focuses on a particular hunting related topic. Some of the topics covered so far include turkey hunting 101, virtual scouting and Zone D11, D13 and D15 deer hunting opportunities. You can sign up to participate in upcoming webinars at wildlife.ca.gov/Hunter-Education/Advanced. Additionally, you can view recordings of prior webinars by searching for “AHE” titled videos on CDFW’s YouTube channel.

CDFW’s R3 (which stands for recruit, retain and reactivate) program also offers a virtual seminar series called the R3 Harvest Huddle Hour (R3H3). R3H3 seminars are focused on people new to hunting, fishing, foraging and shooting sports. You can register for these events by clicking on the calendar events listed on the R3 webpage. Past recordings can be found here. You may also find resources listed under the ‘hunting’ tab useful too, like this older guide on hunting pigs (PDF) in California.

Rattlesnakes

Q: I followed the news story about the Santa Rosa resident who found dozens of rattlesnakes under his home. Should I be worried about rattlesnakes under my house? Are rattlesnakes aggressive?

A: It’s perfectly natural, and perhaps even an innate human reaction, to feel worried when hearing a story about a California resident finding so many potentially dangerous snakes so close. In general, rattlesnakes are not aggressive. They avoid conflict to the best of their ability because they don’t want to risk injury or death in a battle or to waste venom by biting something that isn’t prey. The most familiar way rattlesnakes avoid conflict is signaling their presence by rattling and taking a defensive coiled posture when a potential threat gets too close for comfort. If left alone, they will move away from the threat, not toward it. A lot of bites occur when people are trying to kill or move rattlesnakes. However, not all bites involve envenomation. They will sometimes “dry bite” as a warning. Rattlesnakes are distributed broadly across the state but are typically found in open habitats like grasslands, savanna and desert, often in and around rock outcrops when available. When they are found in homes and yards, it’s usually along a wildland-urban interface. However, coming across a den under a house like the one in Santa Rosa is incredibly rare. It’s important to recognize that rattlesnakes don’t seek out or prefer to live near people, but they will den under a home if there is an abundance of prey and if it’s the best available habitat in an area. The Santa Rosa story is a good reminder that we should be mindful of our surroundings when we spend time outdoors and around our homes, especially during warmer weather. Residents can make their yards rattlesnake safe by removing objects that attract them and their prey. This can include keeping vegetation away from fences, removing piles of boards or rocks around the home and repairing any holes in vents or other potential access points. For more information on rattlesnakes in California, please visit wildlife.ca.gov/Keep-Me-Wild/Rattlesnakes.

Media contact:
Ken Paglia, CDFW Communications