The abundant and diverse ocean waters off California are home to both extraordinary wildlife and essential fisheries that provide jobs, economic stability, and quality of life for thousands of people.
Unfortunately, about 10 years ago, one iconic California fishery found itself in a difficult position when there was a sharp increase in the number of humpback whales and blue whales entangled in the fishing traps used to catch Dungeness crab.
Until recently, all commercial crabbing in California used conventional gear, which involves placing traps on the seafloor that are connected to surface buoys with vertical lines that remain in the water column for days at a time. The hundreds of thousands of vertical lines set by the crab fishery create a hazardous entanglement risk for passing wildlife, with entanglements often ending in death.
Due to climate change, the cold-water habitat where humpback whales feed continues to shrink, increasing the overlap between whales and crab fishing activity and elevating the risk of entanglement in fishing gear.
To protect marine wildlife like threatened and endangered whales and endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtles, California state regulators began shortening the commercial Dungeness crab season to reduce that overlap between protected wildlife and crab gear. Despite the shorter seasons, entanglements continued and crab fishers have faced inconsistent season openings and early season closures, meaning lost fishing opportunities.
But this year, for the first time, the Dungeness crab fishery off central California is safely operating through the spring without risking deadly whale and sea turtle entanglements. And it’s all thanks to an innovative type of fishing gear.
It’s called on-demand gear, and it’s ready for prime time.
A New Solution Emerges
On-demand fishing gear — also known as “pop-up” or “ropeless” gear — is a tested and approved gear type for use in California’s commercial Dungeness crab fishery during any closures in the spring fishing season. Two different types of on-demand gear are already actively being used as of April 2026, with hopefully more to come. It has been shown to safely and effectively catch crab while drastically reducing the risk of whales and sea turtles becoming entangled in the ropes and lines.
The main difference between on-demand gear and conventional gear is that while on-demand gear still uses traps on the seafloor, the lines and buoys remain stowed with the gear and crab fishers are allowed to connect up to 25 traps in a string of gear on the seafloor connected by a groundline.
When a fisherman returns to pull their traps, they send an acoustic signal from their fishing vessel that releases the lines and buoys, allowing them to float to the surface for retrieval attached to the string of traps bursting with crab.
A Win-Win for Fisheries and Wildlife
In February 2026, California regulators officially approved two types of on-demand gear (produced by gear developers Sub Sea Sonics/Guardian and EdgeTech) to allow continued crabbing during spring months beginning April 1 through June 30 in areas where the conventional season closes early due to the increased whale activity.
It’s a win-win for crab fishers, wildlife, and anyone who cares about healthy oceans. And as the saying goes, it took a village to make it happen.
This progress would not have been possible without enormous efforts from crab fishers who took the initiative to test, modify, and support on-demand gear, along with innovative gear developers like Sub Sea Sonics/Guardian Ropeless that took a chance and developed the first approved gear type. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife showed initiative and creativity to develop new rules to support the fishing industry and protect wildlife. And Oceana helped lead the way by connecting crab fishers with gear innovators, facilitating the early years of testing and through ongoing advocacy and collaborations with everyone through the process.
Extensive experimental trials modified the system to be workable in the Dungeness crab fishery and proved the gear works. Between 2023 and 2025, testing under experimental fishing permits brought in over 447,000 pounds of crab worth an estimated $3 million without a single vertical line in the water. State fishery enforcement officers also learned to use the gear during testing and developed new rules to ensure proper use of the gear. Ultimately, the testing demonstrated to crab fishers and managers that the gear is profitable, reliable, and safe for whales.
A Model for the Future
Humpback whales are among the most beloved ocean animals and Dungeness crab is one of the most sought-after seafoods. When these two collided it created serious challenges, but with collaboration and innovation the newly approved on-demand gear offers hope for the two to co-exist.
While there have been trials using on-demand gear in other regions, California is the first to approve it as an authorized gear in a fishery for use in seasonal closed areas. This success is not only great news for California, it also offers an example that can be adapted in other fisheries and regions struggling with the challenge of wildlife entanglements.
Clearly, each region differs in its ecosystem, fisheries and politics. But the spirit of innovation, cooperation, persistence, and conservation that led to the gear being approved in California can be replicated. Already, California’s coonstripe shrimp fishery is adapting on-demand gear systems developed for Dungeness crab for their fishery this season.
Further north, the Oregon Dungeness crab fishery – which is also experiencing humpback whale entanglements – is in the early stages of developing a conservation plan and testing on-demand gear.
There is more work to be done, but California is showing that it’s possible to have whale-safe fisheries. To learn more and get involved please visit www.oceana.org/whalesafeoceans
