The following information is not an official copy of the laws in effect and should not be utilized or relied upon as such. It does represent an attempt to present, as a public service, a partial summary of the laws in effect at the time of the compilation of this page. Substantive changes to the law may very well occur following the compilation of this page. For these reasons, the accuracy of the information contained in this page cannot be guaranteed and the reader is cautioned that it is his responsibility to appraise himself of the laws in effect at any given time. These laws include those contained within the Louisiana Revised Statutes, particularly Title 56, the official regulations of the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, federal laws, and any local or parish ordinances. Fishing regulations on state Wildlife Management Areas and Refuges may differ from those contained here. Contact the nearest Department office for WMA regulations. Contact your local Wildlife and Fisheries Enforcement Agent for specific information.
The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission designates which public oyster beds are open for fishing by opening or closing the season as biological data indicate a need. The owner of an oyster lease or his designee, with written permission, may fish oysters at any time of year on their lease.
Note: Areas opened by the Commission may, however, be closed by the Department of Health and Hospitals for health reasons. Information on closed areas is available from the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries or from the Department of Health and Hospitals.
The Commission shall fix the open season for oyster tonging in Calcasieu Lake and Sabine Lake, which for Sabine Lake shall begin on Nov. 15 and shall end on April 30 and for Calcasieu Lake shall begin on any date between Oct. 15 and Nov. 1 and shall end on April 30.
Size/Possession Limits:
All oysters taken from natural reefs must be three inches or greater in length from hinge to mouth. A lessee of private oyster grounds may be permitted to take undersized oysters from public grounds for bedding purposes only. Size restrictions do not apply to commercially harvested oysters taken from a private lease.
Recreational oyster fishermen may harvest oysters in leased areas only with (1) the written permission of the lease holder, (2) in personally leased areas and (3) in areas open to the public for the harvesting of oysters, but shall be limited to two sacks per person per day for personal consumption EXCEPT Calcasieu Lake and Sabine Lake where recreational oyster harvesters are limited to two sacks per boat.
Methods of Taking:
Recreational oyster harvest for home consumption is limited to tonging or gathering by hand. A recreational tonging license is required for each tong in use and a recreational fishing license is required for persons 16 to 59 inclusive for taking oysters by hand.
Leases:
Any person who qualifies and who desires to lease a part of the bottom of any state waters shall present to the Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries a written application and cash deposit of such amount as determined by the Department.
Restrictions:
No person shall trawl, seine or use a skimmer net over any privately leased bedding grounds or oyster propagating place which is staked off, marked or posted as required by law or regulation.
Culling oysters, which is the act of discarding undersized oysters or dead shell, shall be performed only on the open designated public grounds or on private leases on which the fisherman is authorized to take oysters. At no time will the act of culling oysters be permitted in areas closed to harvesting oysters.
The taking of oysters one-half hour after sunset until one-half hour before sunrise is prohibited.
Oysters taken from the reefs of this state either for sale or consumption shall be landed in Louisiana, except with an out-of-state oyster landing permit and in compliance with all other rules and regulations.
