2011 NC Recreational Coastal Waters Guide for Sports Fishermen
March 2011 version
(Website chart reflects the most recent changes to size and bag limits)

Download a printable PDF version of this Rec Guide
New weakfish bag limit effective May 16, 2010. See FF-54-2010
New Snapper/Grouper rules effective October 4, 2010. See FF-71-2010
New Spotted Seatrout size and bag limits effective Nov. 30, 2010. See FF-81-2010
For inland water limits contact Wildlife Resources Commission (919) 707-0220
or visit their website www.ncwildlife.org
A Coastal Recreational Fishing License went into effect Jan. 1, 2007
for all of the state's coastal and ocean waters.
  State Coastal Waters
(Internal & 0-3 Miles)		 Exclusive Economic Zone EEZ
(3-200 miles)
Finfish Species
(note symbols)		 Minimum Length Bag Limits
(Per Person)		 Minimum Length Bag Limits
(Per Person)
Greater Amberjack 28" FL 1/Day 28" FL 1/Day
Bluefish None 15/Day
Only 5 greater than 24" TL
None
15/Day
Cobia 33" FL 2/Day 33" FL 2/Day
Wahoo None 2/Day None 2/Day
Dolphin (B) None 10/Day None 10/Day
King Mackerel (I)
Species Identification		 24" FL 3/Day 24" FL 3/Day
Spanish Mackerel (I)
Species Identification		 12" FL 15/Day 12" FL 15/Day
Tuna(I);Bluefin(G), Yellowfin & Bigeye Yellowfin 27" CFL
Bigeye 27" CFL 		Yellowfin 3 per day Yellowfin tuna 27" CFL Yellowfin Tuna
3 per day
Sharks(I)
(excluding spiny and smooth dogfish)		 (K)
 		 1/Vessel/Day 54"FL (E, K) 1/Vessel/Day
Sharks, Atlantic Sharpnose and Bonnethead (E) None (F) (E, K) 1/Day
Blue Marlin(G) 99" LJFL 1/vessel/trip either Blue or White Marlin 99" LJFL  
White Marlin (G) 66" LJFL 1/vessel/trip either Blue or White Marlin 66" LJFL  
Sailfish (G) 63" LJFL 1/Day 63" LJFL  
Red Drum
(Channel Bass,
Puppy Drum)
18-27" TL (C)
1/Day
Unlawful to Possess
Flounder 15" TL 6/Day 15" TL 6/Day
Spotted Seatrout (Speckled)
See FF-7-2011		 Closed until June 15    
Weakfish
(Gray Trout)		 12" TL

1/Day
see FF-54-2010)

12" TL  
Mullet
(Striped and White) 		None 200/Day
(species combined) 		None  
Tarpon None 1/Day None 1/Day
Striped Bass
See striped bass details
(A)
(A)
Unlawful To Possess
American and
Hickory Shad		 None 10/Day None 10/Day
Alewife and
Blueback Herring 		None No Harvest None No Harvest
American Eel 6" TL 50/Day 6" TL 50/Day
Scup
(North of Cape Hatteras)		 8" TL 50/Day 10" TL 50/Day (D)
Black Sea Bass
(North of Cape Hatteras) 		Season closed
until July 1 		Season closed
until July 1
Black Sea Bass
(South of Cape Hatteras)
See FF-39-2011		 Season closed
Feb. 12 - June 1 		Season closed
Feb. 12 - June 1
Groupers (H, I, J, K) (See below) (See below) (See below) (See below)
Red, Scamp, Yellowfin and Yellowmouth Groupers 20" TL 3/Day (all groupers combined; includes 1 golden tilefish, and no more than 1 black or gag grouper, individual or combined) (J) 20" TL 3/Day (all groupers combined; includes tilefish,
1 golden tilefish, and no more than 1 black or gag grouper, individual or combined) (J)
Black and Gag Groupers 24" TL 1/Day (See above) 24" TL 1/Day
(See above)
Speckled Hind
(Kitty Mitchell)		 NO POSSESSION NONE NO POSSESSION
Warsaw Grouper NO POSSESSION NONE NO POSSESSION
Snowy Grouper 1 / vessel / day   1 / vessel / day  
Red Porgy
(Silver Snapper, Pinky)		 14" TL 3/Day 14" TL 3/Day
Dog, Gray, Cubera, Mahogany, Queen, Schoolmaster and Yellowtail Snappers   10/Day
(Species combined)		 12" TL 10/Day
(Species combined)
Mutton Snapper   See Above 12" TL See Above
Silk and Blackfin Snappers 12" TL See Above 12" TL See Above
Red Snapper NO POSSESSION NO POSSESSION
Hogfish
(Hog Snapper) 		12" TL 5/Day    
Vermillion Snapper (J) Closed through March 31 Closed through March 31
Reef Complex Species Includes sheepshead, spadefish, gray triggerfish, white grunt, knobbed porgy and more (see notes H & I)   20/Day   20/Day
Mullet,
Striped and white 		  200/Day (Species combined)    
Prohibited Finfish Species
Coastal Waters
(Internal waters and Atlantic Ocean out to 3 miles		 Federal Waters / EEZ
(Atlantic Ocean more than 3 miles)
Sharks; (whale, basking, white, sand tiger, bigeye sand tiger, Atlantic angel shark, bigeye sixgill, bigeye thresher, bignose, Caribbean reef, Caribbean sharpnose, dusky, Galapogos, longfin mako, narrowtooth, night, sandbar, silky, sevengill, sixgill, and smalltail), sturgeon, Nassau grouper, Goliath grouper (jewfish), Warsaw grouper, speckled hind and red snapper.
Sharks; (whale, basking, white, sand tiger, bigeye sand tiger, Atlantic angel shark, bigeye sixgill, bigeye thresher, bignose, Caribbean reef, Caribbean sharpnose, dusky, Galapogos, longfin mako, narrowtooth, night, sandbar, silky, sevengill, sixgill, and smalltail), red drum, striped bass, sturgeon, Nassau grouper, Goliath grouper (jewfish) and longbill spearfish.
Shellfish and Crustaceans
State Coastal and EEZ Waters
Internal and 0-200 miles
Species
(note symbols)		 Minimum Size Bag Limits
(Per Person)
Blue Crab (L)
Identification Help		 5" Carapace Width (Minimum)
6 3/4" Carapace Width (Maximum) (F) 		50 crabs/day not to exceed 100 crabs/vessel/day
Hard Clam 1" Thick 100 clams/day not to exceed 200 clams/vessel/day
Oyster (M) 3" Shell Length 1 bushel/day not to exceed 2 bushels/vessel/day
Bay Scallops (M) None 1/2 bushel/day, not to exceed one bushel per vessel
Conchs & Whelks None 10/day not to exceed 20/vessel/day
Mussels None 100/day not to exceed 200/vessel/day
Shrimp
(Closed shrimping area) 		None 100 shrimp/person/day (Cast net only)
Shrimp
(Open shrimping area)
 		 None 48 qts. heads on, 30 qts. heads off
(Per person or vessel except RCGL max. 2 limits/vessel)
Explanation of Symbols

(A) Albemarle Sound Management Area: contact DMF for seasons, areas or other limits; Atlantic Ocean year-round: 2 per person per day at 28” TL minimum; Other coastal areas (excluding Inland Waters-regulations set by Wildlife Resources Commission), 2 per person per day at 18” TL minimum and unlawful to possess between 22” – 27” TL in Joint waters. Moratorium in Cape Fear River system. Season October through April, statewide by proclamation (except Cape FearRiver). Includes hybrid bass.

  1. Limit of 10/person/day or 60/trip, whichever is less. On headboats, limit is 10/person/day.
  2. Unlawful to possess red drum greater than 27 inches total length. Unlawful to gig, spear, or gaff red drum.

(D) North of Cape Hatteras Scup recreational season may change this summer.

(E) See prohibited species list above; Legal sharks include: tiger, blacktip, spinner, lemon, bull, nurse, smooth and scalloped and great hammerhead, blacknose, finetooth, bonnethead, shortfin mako, blue, thresher, porbeagle, and oceanic whitetip. One (1) Atlantic sharpnose (no minimum size) and one bonnethead (no minimum size) per person per day may be landed in addition to allowable bag limits for other sharks.

(F) Mature female crabs are exempt from minimum size. Maximum size is effective September through April and applies to mature females only.

(G) In state or federal waters, federal permit required for Highly Migratory Species, excluding Atlantic bonito, little tunny (albacore), and blackfin tuna: (978) 281-9370. Prior to removal from vessel, all billfishes, swordfish and bluefin tuna must be reported at NC HMS reporting stations.

(H) Reef complex species: whitebone porgy, jolthead porgy, knobbed porgy, longspine porgy, sheepshead, gray triggerfish, queen triggerfish, yellow jack, crevalle jacks, bar jack, almaco jack, lesser amberjack, banded rudderfish, white grunt, margates, spadefish and scup. 20 per person per day in combination.

(I) For seasons, bag limits, size limits or closures for tunas, billfishes, and sharks contact NMFS Highly Migratory Species Division 1-800-894-5528. For snapper, grouper, and mackerels contact the South Atlantic Council ((843) 571-4366 or www.safmc.net) and see Proclamation FF-40-2011.

(J) Vermilion snapper season is closed November 1-March 31. Shallow water grouper species (gag, black grouper, red grouper, scamp, rock hind, red hind, coney, grasby, yellowfin, grouper, yellowmouth grouper and tiger grouper) harvest is prohibited January 1–April 30. Possession of red snapper is currently prohibited.

(K) Groupers in the management unit include: red, yellowfin, yellowmouth, black, warsaw, snowy, yellowedge, and misty grouper; gag, scamp, speckled hind, red hind, rock hind, graysby, and coney. The three (3) grouper bag limit in the EEZ also includes blueline, golden, and sand tilefish. No possession of Nassau and Goliath grouper.

(L) It is unlawful to possess Large Coastal and Pelagic sharks less than 54 inches (Fork Length).

(M) One crab pot may be used from private property or private pier, without a license – Reference 15A NCAC 3J .0302.

(N) Contact DMF or visit www.ncdmf.net/procs for seasons, areas, or other restrictions.

Total length (TL) is measured from tip of snout with mouth closed to top of compressed tail. Fork length (FL) is measured from tip of snout to middle of fork in tail. Lower jaw fork length (LJFL) is measured from lower jaw to middle of fork in tail. Curved fork length (CFL) is the measurement of the length taken in a line tracing the contour of the body from the tip of the upper jaw to the fork of the tail.

Anglers cannot catch both a federal and state bag limit for the same species on the same trip.

Ocean boundary is defined as water seaward of the COLREGS Demarcation Lines as indicated on National Ocean Service navigation charts

No one may possess aboard a vessel or while engaged in fishing any fish subject to limits without head and tail attached, except for alewife and blueback herring used for bait provided not more than two fish per boat/operation may be cut at any one time – Reference 15A NCAC 3M .0101

IMPORTANT Check with Division of Marine Fisheries for most current minimum lengths and catch limits. (252) 726-7021 or 1-800-682-2632.
For inland water limits contact Wildlife Resources Commission (919) 707-0220 or visit their website:
www.ncwildlife.org

This document is a public record under chapter 132 of the North Carolina General Statutes. Anyone who alters, defaces, mutilates or destroys it shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction subject to fines.

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THIS DOCUMENT IS EFFECTIVE MARCH 4, 2011 AND IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES AND HAS NO LEGAL FORCE OR EFFECT. FISHERY RULES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE. THESE RESTRICTIONS APPLY TO FISH TAKEN FOR RECREATIONAL PURPOSE AND INCLUDE HOOK AND LINE. Updated State regulations can be found at www.ncdmf.net/recreational/recguide.htm and updated Recreational Commercial Gear License information can be found at www.ncdmf.net/license/RCGL.htm

(Updated 3/21/11)