Creel Quick answer: Red Abalone is closed in every California region. The bag limit is the same in every region it applies to. Read on September 7, 2026; seasons change in-season with days of notice.
How to identify Red Abalone
A dull brick-red shell with a lumpy, undulating surface and a red rim, carrying 3 to 4 open respiratory pores that are oval and slightly tubular. The body and tentacles are black, the area between the tentacles is lobed and smooth, and the muscle scar inside is prominent with straight green lines. The pore count is what separates it: black abalone has 5 to 9 holes and no muscle scar, green has 5 to 7 with ribbing, pink has 2 to 4 round raised holes, flat has 4 to 8.
Size, range and where it lives
| Size | The largest abalone in the world. Tagging in northern California shows red abalone take about 12 years to reach 7 inches, and roughly 5 more years to go from 7 to 8. Females mature at around 5 inches, males at around 4. |
|---|---|
| Range | The Pacific coast of North America. The California recreational fishery that mattered was concentrated north of San Francisco. |
| Habitat | Rocky bottom with kelp, which is what they eat. When kelp is missing in deeper water they move shallower to find food, which is part of why the population fell with the kelp. |
Red Abalone by region
| Region | Status | Bag limit | Size limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northern | Closed | — | — |
| Mendocino | Closed | — | — |
| San Francisco | Closed | — | — |
| SF Bay | Closed | — | — |
| Central | Closed | — | — |
| Southern | Closed | — | — |
Season dates
- Closed until at least Apr 1, 2036
- closed year-round
What it costs to get it wrong
An undersize fish or one over the bag limit runs roughly $430 to $485 in total bail as an infraction, plus a further $71 to $82 for every individual fish over the line. Charged as a misdemeanor the base part is about $958 to $1,095, with the same per-fish amount on top. The range is real: two of the assessments are set county by county.
How California fishing fines are actually calculated →
This page is a snapshot taken on September 7, 2026. Creel re-reads every CDFW regional page daily and shows current status for your region, offline. Always confirm with CDFW before fishing.