NMFS proposes a higher St. Croix spiny lobster catch limit and a slight cut off St. Thomas

Federal spiny lobster catch limits off the U.S. Virgin Islands are up for a reset based on newer assessments. A National Marine Fisheries Service proposed rule published Oct. 16, 2026, would implement Framework Action 4 to the St. Croix fishery management plan and the St. Thomas and St. John plan. Comments are due Nov. 16 under docket NOAA-NMFS-2026-2146.

The St. Croix annual catch limit would rise from 137,254 pounds round weight to 176,760 pounds. The St. Thomas and St. John limit would fall from 133,207 pounds to 132,964 pounds, a cut of 243 pounds. Both numbers come from the SEDAR 91 assessments. The Caribbean Fishery Management Council used a 5 percent management-uncertainty buffer in St. Croix, so the catch limit is 95 percent of the acceptable biological catch. Off St. Thomas and St. John the council set no buffer, because the biological catch itself went down and the council wanted to limit the economic hit.

NMFS said the latest St. Croix landings, from 2024, sit well under both the current and proposed limits. St. Thomas and St. John landings that year were slightly under both figures. Relative to a recent five-year average of 109,814 pounds, the agency does not expect the small St. Thomas and St. John reduction to constrain current harvest. The council asked for an interim assessment by December 2027. Comments can be filed at regulations.gov or mailed to Maria Lopez-Mercer at the NMFS Southeast Regional Office, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701. Contact is Sarah Stephenson, (727) 824-5305.

This is a The Gillnet news desk summary, not a reprint.

Source: Federal Register — Spiny lobster management measures for St. Croix and St. Thomas and St. John (Oct. 16, 2026).