Photos: At long last, CRAB. Bay Area’s commercial Dungeness season starts

Crab lovers flocked to the Port of San Francisco and Pillar Point Harbor in Half Moon Bay on Thursday for the first crustaceans of 2024. This is the official start of the Bay Area’s commercial Dungeness crab fishing season after two months’ worth of delays to keep whales migrating south from getting caught in fishing lines. The decision from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife opened up crabbing from the Sonoma/Mendocino line down to the Mexican border but came with a key restriction: Crabbers are required to adhere to a 50 percent reduction in traps. That ruling will be reviewed after the CDFW’s next assessment, scheduled to take place on or around Feb. 15.

Matt Juanes brings the Plumeria back into Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco, Calif., with the first crab catch of the season, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. The commercial fishing season was delayed for two-months out of concern from marine mammals. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) 
Jake Karp lines up first for the chance to buy fresh Dungeness crab from Matt Juanes, the captain of the Plumeria, after it returned to Fisherman’s Wharf, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. The crustaceans were among the first catch coming in to port after a two-month long crab season delay. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) 
Neil Frasier holds up the first Dungeness crab of the season sold from the fishing boat Plumeria at Fisherman’s Wharf, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. The 2.4 pound crustacean was among the catch coming in to port after a two-month long crab season delay. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) 
Jake Karp lined up first to buy fresh Dungeness crab from Matt Juanes, the captain of the Plumeria, after it returned to the dock at Fisherman’s Wharf, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. The crustaceans were among the first catch coming in to port after a two-month long crab season delay. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) 
Neil Frasier holds up the first Dungeness crab of the season sold from the fishing boat Plumeria at Fisherman’s Wharf, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. The 2.4 pound crustacean was among the catch coming in to port after a two-month long crab season delay. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)