Three Bay Area residents have been arrested after officers say they found nearly 500 illegally harvested Pismo clams during a late-night clamming investigation on the Central Coast.
According to authorities, an officer spotted a group carrying what appeared to be a large amount of clams after legal clamming hours had ended. Officers say when they were contacted two people took off, though one later returned.
Officers recovered 494 Pismo clams during the investigation, but only 16 met California's legal minimum size requirement.
Investigators say no one in the group had a valid fishing license, measuring device, or clam fork, all of which are required for legal clamming. The three suspects were arrested on multiple commercial fishing-related violations and booked into jail.
Officials say all recovered clams were successfully reburied and are expected to survive.
Pismo clam populations were once heavily depleted due to overharvesting, but conservation efforts and strict regulations have helped the species recover. KSBY community reporter Makayla Richardson recently filed this story about clamming concerns at Pismo Beach: https://www.ksby.com/pismo-beach/clamming-concerns-on-the-central-coast
Authorities are reminding people that clammers must have a valid fishing license, use an accurate measuring device, and only keep clams measuring at least 4½ inches. The daily bag limit is 10 Pismo clams, and clamming is only allowed from a half-hour before sunrise to a half-hour after sunset.
