AUSTIN- The Gulf of Mexico commercial shrimp season for both state and federal waters will reopen 30 minutes after sunset on Saturday, July 15. The opening date is based on an evaluation of the biological, social and economic impact to maximize the benefits to the industry and the public. The commercial gulf shrimp season has been closed since May 15.

In making its determination, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s (TPWD) Coastal Fisheries Division used the best available data from samples collected during routine trawls and bag seines in June.

The Gulf season was closed to protect brown shrimp until they can reach larger, more valuable sizes during their major period of emigration from the bays to the Gulf of Mexico. The closure also helped to prevent the waste caused by the discarding of smaller individual shrimp.

Federal waters (from 9 to 200 nautical miles offshore) will open at the same time that state waters will open. The National Marine Fisheries Service chose to adopt rules compatible with those adopted by Texas.