The management area is the EEZ around St. Croix bounded by rhumb lines connecting the following points and geographic instructions in order:

In addition to the definitions and acronyms in § 622.2, the terms and acronyms used in this subpart have the following meanings:

Coral means any or all species, or a part thereof, of coral occurring in the EEZ around St. Croix, including any or all species, or a part thereof, of soft corals and gorgonians in Order Alcyonacea; sea pens and sea pansies in Order Pennatulacea; black corals in Order Antipatharia; stony corals in Order Scleractinia; and, within Order Anthoatheacata, fire corals in Family Milleporidae and lace corals in Family Stylasteridae.

Coral reef resource means any or all species, or a part thereof, of coral, sea cucumber, and sea urchin.

Pelagic fish means any or all species, or a part thereof, as follows:

Queen conch means the species Lobatus gigas, or a part thereof.

Reef fish means any or all species, or a part thereof, as follows:

Sea cucumber means any or all species, or a part thereof, in Class Holothuroidea and occurring in the EEZ of St. Croix.

Sea urchin means any or all species of sea urchin, or a part thereof, in Class Echinoidea and occurring in the EEZ of St. Croix.

Spiny lobster trap means a trap and its component parts, including the lines and buoys, used for or capable of taking spiny lobster and meeting the spiny lobster trap construction specifications of this subpart.

See § 622.6 for vessel identification requirements applicable to this subpart.

(a) Reef fish—(1) Fish traps and associated buoys. All fish traps used or possessed in the EEZ around St. Croix must display the official number specified for the vessel by Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands. A fish trap that is fished individually, rather than tied together in a trap line, must have at least one buoy attached that floats on the surface. Fish traps that are tied together in a trap line must have at least one buoy that floats at the surface attached at each end of the trap line. All buoys must display the official number and color code assigned to the vessel by Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands, whichever is applicable.

(2) Presumption of ownership of fish traps. A fish trap in the EEZ around St. Croix will be presumed to be the property of the most recently documented owner. This presumption will not apply with respect to such traps that are lost or sold if the owner reports the loss or sale within 15 days to the RA.

(3) Disposition of unmarked fish traps or buoys. An unmarked fish trap or buoy deployed in the EEZ around St. Croix is illegal and may be disposed of in any appropriate manner by the Assistant Administrator or an authorized officer.

(b) [Reserved]

(c) Spiny lobster—(1) Spiny lobster traps and associated buoys. All spiny lobster traps used or possessed in the EEZ around St. Croix must display the official number specified for the vessel by Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands. A spiny lobster trap that is fished individually, rather than tied together in a trap line, must have at least one buoy attached that floats on the surface. Spiny lobster traps that are tied together in a trap line must have at least one buoy that floats at the surface attached at each end of the trap line. All buoys must display the official number and color code assigned to the vessel by Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands, whichever is applicable.

(2) Presumption of ownership of spiny lobster traps. A spiny lobster trap in the EEZ around St. Croix will be presumed to be the property of the most recently documented owner. This presumption will not apply with respect to such traps that are lost or sold if the owner reports the loss or sale within 15 days to the RA.

(3) Disposition of unmarked spiny lobster traps or buoys. An unmarked spiny lobster trap or buoy deployed in the EEZ around St. Croix is illegal and may be disposed of in any appropriate manner by the Assistant Administrator or an authorized officer.

(a) Reef fish—(1) Construction specifications—(i) Minimum mesh size. A bare-wire fish trap used or possessed in the EEZ around St. Croix that has hexagonal mesh openings must have a minimum mesh size of 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) in the smallest dimension measured between centers of opposite strands. A bare-wire fish trap used or possessed in the EEZ around St. Croix that has other than hexagonal mesh openings or a fish trap of other than bare wire, such as coated wire or plastic, used or possessed in the EEZ around St. Croix, must have a minimum mesh size of 2 inches (5.1 cm) in the smallest dimension measured between centers of opposite strands.

(ii) Escape mechanisms. A fish trap used or possessed in the EEZ around St. Croix must have a panel located on one side of the trap, excluding the top, bottom, and side containing the trap entrance. The opening covered by the panel must measure not less than 8 by 8 inches (20.3 by 20.3 cm). The mesh size of the panel may not be smaller than the mesh size of the trap. The panel must be attached to the trap with untreated jute twine with a diameter not exceeding 1/8-inch (3.2 mm). An access door may serve as the panel, provided it is on an appropriate side, it is hinged only at its bottom, its only other fastening is untreated jute twine with a diameter not exceeding 1/8-inch (3.2 mm), and such fastening is at the top of the door so that the door will fall open when such twine degrades. Jute twine used to secure a panel may not be wrapped or overlapped.

(2) Tending restrictions. A fish trap in the EEZ around St. Croix may be pulled or tended only by a person (other than an authorized officer) aboard the fish trap owner's vessel, or aboard another vessel if such vessel has on board written consent of the trap owner, or if the trap owner is aboard and has documentation verifying his identification number and color code. An owner's written consent must specify the time period such consent is effective and the trap owner's gear identification number and color code.

(b) [Reserved]

(c) Spiny lobster—(1) Construction specifications—(i) Escape mechanisms. A spiny lobster trap used or possessed in the EEZ around St. Croix must contain on any vertical side or on the top a panel no smaller in diameter than the throat or entrance of the trap. The panel must be made of or attached to the trap by one of the following degradable materials:

(A) Untreated fiber of biological origin with a diameter not exceeding 1/8-inch (3.2 mm). This includes, but is not limited to tyre palm, hemp, jute, cotton, wool, or silk.

(B) Ungalvanized or uncoated iron wire with a diameter not exceeding 1/16-inch (1.6 mm), that is, 16-gauge wire.

(ii) [Reserved]

(2) Tending restrictions. A spiny lobster trap in the EEZ around St. Croix may be pulled or tended only by a person (other than an authorized officer) aboard the trap owner's vessel, or aboard another vessel if such vessel has on board written consent of the trap owner, or if the trap owner is aboard and has documentation verifying his identification number and color code. An owner's written consent must specify the time period such consent is effective and the trap owner's gear identification number and color code.

The owner or operator of any fishing vessel, recreational or commercial, that fishes for or possesses reef fish in or from the EEZ around St. Croix must ensure that the vessel uses only an anchor retrieval system that recovers the anchor by its crown, thereby preventing the anchor from dragging along the bottom during recovery. For a grapnel hook, this could include an incorporated anchor rode reversal bar that runs parallel along the shank, which allows the rode to reverse and slip back toward the crown. For a fluke- or plow-type anchor, a trip line consisting of a line from the crown of the anchor to a surface buoy is required.

Also see § 622.9 for additional prohibited gear and methods that apply more broadly to multiple fisheries or in some cases all fisheries.

(a) Reef fish—(1) Poisons. A poison, drug, or other chemical may not be used to fish for reef fish in the EEZ around St. Croix.

(2) Powerheads. A powerhead may not be used in the EEZ around St. Croix to harvest reef fish. The possession of a mutilated reef fish in or from the EEZ around St. Croix and a powerhead constitutes a rebuttable presumption of a violation of this paragraph (a)(2).

(3) Gillnets and trammel nets. A gillnet or trammel net may not be used in the EEZ around St. Croix to fish for reef fish. The possession of a reef fish in or from the EEZ around St. Croix and a gillnet or trammel net constitutes a rebuttable presumption of a violation of this paragraph (a)(3). A gillnet or trammel net used in the EEZ around St. Croix to fish for any other species must be tended at all times.

(b) [Reserved]

(c) Spiny lobster—(1) Spears and hooks. A spear, hook, or similar device may not be used in the EEZ around St. Croix to harvest a spiny lobster. The possession of a speared, pierced, or punctured spiny lobster in or from the EEZ around St. Croix constitutes a rebuttable presumption of a violation of this paragraph (c)(1).

(2) Gillnets and trammel nets. A gillnet or trammel net may not be used in the EEZ around St. Croix to fish for spiny lobster. The possession of a spiny lobster in or from the EEZ around St. Croix and a gillnet or trammel net constitutes a rebuttable presumption of a violation of this paragraph (c)(2). A gillnet or trammel net used in the EEZ around St. Croix to fish for any other species must be tended at all times.

(d) [Reserved]

(e) Queen conch. In the EEZ around St. Croix, no person may harvest queen conch by diving while using a device that provides a continuous air supply from the surface.

The harvest and possession restrictions of this section apply without regard to whether the species is harvested by a vessel operating under a commercial vessel permit. The operator of a vessel that fishes in the EEZ around St. Croix is responsible for the limit applicable to that vessel. Any of the following species caught in the EEZ around St. Croix must be released immediately with a minimum of harm.

(a) Reef fish. No person may fish for or possess the following reef fish species in or from the EEZ around St. Croix.

(1) Goliath grouper or Nassau grouper.

(2) Blue parrotfish, midnight parrotfish, or rainbow parrotfish.

(b)-(c) [Reserved]

(d) Coral, sea cucumber, and sea urchin. A coral, sea cucumber, or sea urchin may not be fished for or possessed in or from the EEZ around St. Croix. The taking of coral in the EEZ around St. Croix is not considered unlawful possession provided it is returned immediately to the sea in the general area of fishing.

(e) [Reserved]

(a) Closures applicable to specific areas—(1) Mutton snapper spawning aggregation area. The mutton snapper spawning aggregation area is bounded by rhumb lines connecting, in order, the points listed in Table 1 to this paragraph (a).

(i) From March 1 through June 30, each year, fishing is prohibited in those parts of the mutton snapper spawning aggregation area that are in the EEZ around St. Croix.

(ii) Fishing with pots, traps, bottom longlines, gillnets or trammel nets is prohibited year-round in those parts of the mutton snapper spawning aggregation area that are in the EEZ around St. Croix.

(2) Red hind spawning aggregation area east of St. Croix. The red hind spawning aggregation area east of St. Croix is bounded by rhumb lines connecting, in order, the points listed in Table 2 to this paragraph (a)(2).

(i) From December 1 through the last day of February, each year, fishing is prohibited in the red hind spawning aggregation area east of St. Croix.

(ii) Fishing with pots, traps, bottom longlines, gillnets or trammel nets is prohibited year-round in the red hind spawning aggregation area east of St. Croix.

(b) Seasonal closures applicable to specific species—(1) Black, red, tiger, and yellowfin grouper closure. From February 1 through April 30, each year, no person may fish for or possess black, red, tiger, or yellowfin grouper in or from the EEZ around St. Croix. The prohibition on possession does not apply to such grouper harvested and landed ashore prior to the closure.

(2) Black, blackfin, silk, and vermilion snapper closure. From October 1 through December 31, each year, no person may fish for or possess black, blackfin, silk, or vermilion snapper in or from the EEZ around St. Croix. The prohibition on possession does not apply to such snapper harvested and landed ashore prior to the closure.

(3) Lane and mutton snapper closure. From April 1 through June 30, each year, no person may fish for or possess lane or mutton snapper in or from the EEZ around St. Croix. The prohibition on possession does not apply to such snapper harvested and landed ashore prior to the closure.

(4) Queen conch. No person may fish for or possess a queen conch in or from the EEZ around St. Croix, except from November 1 through May 31 in the area east of 64°34′ W longitude, which includes Lang Bank.

(a) Reef fish. (1) The ACLs are as follows and given in round weight.

(2) At or near the beginning the fishing year, landings for each stock, stock complex, or indicator stock will be evaluated relative to the ACL based on a moving multi-year average of landings, as described in the FMP. If NMFS estimates that landings for a stock, stock complex, or indicator stock have exceeded the ACL specified in paragraph (a)(1) of this section for the stock or stock complex, the Assistant Administrator for NOAA Fisheries (AA) will file a notification with the Office of the Federal Register to reduce the length of the fishing season for the stock or stock complex within that fishing year by the amount necessary to prevent landings from exceeding the ACL for the stock or stock complex, unless NMFS determines that a fishing season reduction is not necessary based on the best scientific information available. If NMFS determines that the ACL for a particular stock or stock complex was exceeded because data collection or monitoring improved rather than because landings increased, NMFS will not reduce the length of the fishing season for the stock or stock complex. Any fishing season reduction required under this paragraph (a)(2) will be applied starting from September 30 and moving earlier toward the beginning of the fishing year. If the length of the required fishing season reduction exceeds the time period of January 1 through September 30, any additional fishing season reduction will be applied starting from October 1 and moving later toward the end of the fishing year.

(b) Pelagic fish. The ACLs and ACTs are given in round weight.

(1) Dolphinfish. (i) ACL—86,633 lb (39,296 kg).

(ii) ACT—77,970 lb (35,366.5 kg).

(2) Wahoo. (i) ACL—27,260 lb (12,364.9 kg).

(ii) ACT—24,534 lb (11,128.4 kg).

(3) Pelagic fish AM application. At or near the beginning the fishing year, landings for the stock or stock complex will be evaluated relative to the ACT for the stock or stock complex based on a moving multi-year average of landings, as described in the FMP. If NMFS estimates that landings have exceeded the ACT specified in paragraph (b) of this section, NMFS in consultation with the Caribbean Fishery Management Council will determine appropriate corrective action.

(c) Spiny lobster. (1) For the 2023 fishing year, the ACL is 140,667 lb (63,805 kg), round weight. For the 2024 and subsequent fishing years, the ACL is 120,830 lb (54,807 kg), round weight.

(2) At or near the beginning of the fishing year, NMFS will compare a 3 year average of available landings to the average ACLs effective during those same years, as described in the FMP. If NMFS estimates that average landings have exceeded the average ACLs, the AA will file a notification with the Office of the Federal Register to reduce the length of the fishing season for spiny lobster within that fishing year by the amount necessary to prevent average landings from exceeding the ACL for that fishing year, as specified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section. If NMFS determines that a fishing season reduction is not necessary based on the best scientific information available, or if NMFS determines the ACL exceedance was due to improved data collection or monitoring rather than from increased landings, NMFS will not reduce the length of the fishing season. Any fishing season reduction required under this paragraph (c)(2) will be applied starting from September 30 and moving earlier toward the beginning of the fishing year. If the length of the required fishing season reduction exceeds the time period of January 1 through September 30, any additional fishing season reduction will be applied starting from October 1 and moving later toward the end of the fishing year.

(d) [Reserved]

(e) Queen conch. (1) ACL—50,000 lb (22,679.6 kg), round weight.

(2) If NMFS estimates landings reach or are projected to reach the ACL specified in paragraph (e)(1) of this section, the AA will close the area east of 64°34′ W longitude in the EEZ around St. Croix to the harvest and possession of queen conch by filing a notification of the closure with the Office of the Federal Register. During the closure period, no person may fish for or possess a queen conch in or from the area east of 64°34′ W longitude in the EEZ around St. Croix.

(f) Closure provisions for reef fish, spiny lobster, and queen conch. The following restrictions apply during a fishing season closure for reef fish, spiny lobster, or queen conch in the EEZ around St. Croix. During the closure period announced in the notification filed pursuant to paragraph (a)(2), (c)(2), or (e)(2) of this section, such stock or stock complex in or from the EEZ around St. Croix may not be harvested, possessed, purchased, or sold, and the commercial trip limits and recreational bag and possession limits are zero.

All size limits in this section are minimum size limits unless specified otherwise. A fish not in compliance with its size limit in or from the EEZ around St. Croix may not be possessed, sold, or purchased, and must be released immediately with a minimum of harm. The operator of a vessel that fishes in the EEZ around St. Croix is responsible for ensuring that all species on board are in compliance with the size limits specified in this section. See § 622.10 regarding requirements for landing fish intact. See § 622.485(c)(2) regarding requirements for landing spiny lobster intact. See § 622.485(e) regarding requirements for landing queen conch with the meat and shell intact.

(a) Reef fish. (1) Yellowtail snapper—12 inches (30.5 cm), TL.

(2) Parrotfishes, except for redband parrotfish, and prohibited blue parrotfish, midnight parrotfish, or rainbow parrotfish—9 inches (22.9 cm), FL.

(3) Redband parrotfish—8 inches (20.3 cm), FL.

(b) [Reserved]

(c) Spiny lobster. 3.5 inches (8.9 cm), carapace length.

(d) [Reserved]

(e) Queen conch. (1) The minimum size limit is either 9 inches (22.9 cm) in length, that is, from the tip of the spire to the distal end of the shell, or 3/8-inch (9.5 mm) in lip width at its widest point.

(2) A queen conch not in compliance with its size limit, as specified in paragraph (e)(1) of this section, in or from the EEZ around St. Croix, may not be possessed, sold, or purchased and must be released immediately with a minimum of harm. The operator of a vessel that fishes in the EEZ around St. Croix is responsible for ensuring that queen conch on board are in compliance with the size limit specified in paragraph (e)(1) this section.

Commercial trip limits are limits on the amount of the applicable species that may be possessed on board or landed, purchased, or sold from a vessel per day. A person who fishes in the EEZ around St. Croix may not combine a trip limit specified in this section with any trip or possession limit applicable to state waters. A species subject to a trip limit specified in this section taken in the EEZ around St. Croix may not be transferred at sea, regardless of where such transfer takes place.

(a) Queen conch. (1) 200.

(2) The trip limits specified in paragraph (a)(1) of this section apply to a vessel that has at least one person on board with a valid commercial fishing license issued by Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands. If no person on the vessel has a valid commercial fishing license issued by Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands, the bag and possession limits specified in § 622.484(e) apply.

(b) [Reserved]

(a) Reef fish. A live red hind or live mutton snapper in or from the EEZ around St. Croix may not be sold or purchased and used in the marine aquarium trade.

(b) [Reserved]

(c) Coral. (1) No person may sell or purchase a coral harvested in the EEZ around St. Croix.

(2) A coral that is sold in St. Croix will be presumed to have been harvested in the EEZ around St. Croix, unless it is accompanied by documentation showing that it was harvested elsewhere. Such documentation must contain:

(i) The information specified in subpart K of part 300 of this title for marking containers or packages of fish or wildlife that are imported, exported, or transported in interstate commerce.

(ii) The name and home port of the vessel, or the name and address of the individual harvesting the coral.

(iii) The port and date of landing the coral.

(iv) A statement signed by the person selling the coral attesting that, to the best of his or her knowledge, information, and belief, such coral was harvested from other than in the EEZ around St. Croix or the waters of Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Section 622.11(a) provides the general applicability for bag and possession limits. However, § 622.11(a) notwithstanding, the bag limits of this section do not apply to a person who has a valid commercial fishing license issued by Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands.

(a) Reef fish. (1) Groupers, parrotfishes, and snappers combined—5 per person per day or, if 3 or more persons are aboard, 15 per vessel per day; but not to exceed 2 parrotfish per person per day or 6 parrotfish per vessel per day.

(2) Angelfishes, grunts, squirrelfishes, surgeonfishes, and triggerfishes combined—5 per person per day or, if 3 or more persons are aboard, 15 per vessel per day, but not to exceed 1 surgeonfish per person per day or 4 surgeonfish per vessel per day.

(b) [Reserved]

(c) Spiny lobster. 3 per person per day, not to exceed 10 per vessel per day, whichever is less.

(d) [Reserved]

(e) Queen conch. 3 per person per day or, if more than 4 persons are aboard, 12 per vessel per day.

(a)-(b) [Reserved]

(c) Spiny lobster—(1) Prohibition on harvest of egg-bearing spiny lobster. Egg-bearing spiny lobster in the EEZ around St. Croix must be returned to the water unharmed. An egg-bearing spiny lobster may be retained in a spiny lobster trap, provided the trap is returned immediately to the water. An egg-bearing spiny lobster may not be stripped, scraped, shaved, clipped, or in any other manner molested, in order to remove the eggs.

(2) Landing spiny lobster intact. (i) A spiny lobster in or from the EEZ around St. Croix must be maintained with head and carapace intact through offloading ashore.

(ii) The operator of a vessel that fishes in the EEZ around St. Croix is responsible for ensuring that spiny lobster on that vessel are maintained intact through offloading ashore, as specified in this section.

(d) [Reserved]

(e) Queen conch. (1) A queen conch in or from the EEZ around St. Croix must be maintained with meat and shell intact through offloading ashore.

(2) The operator of a vessel that fishes in the EEZ around St. Croix is responsible for ensuring that queen conch on that vessel are maintained intact through offloading ashore, as specified in this section.

(a) Minimum size limits for imported spiny lobster. Multiple minimum size limits apply to importation of spiny lobster into the United States—one that applies any place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States other than Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands, and more restrictive minimum size limits that apply to Puerto Rico, St Croix, and St. Thomas and St. John, respectively.

(1) No person may import a spiny lobster with less than a 6-ounce (170-gram) tail weight into St. Croix. For the purposes of paragraph (a) of this section, a 6-ounce (170-gram) tail weight is defined as a tail that weighs 5.9-6.4 ounces (167-181 grams). If the documentation accompanying an imported spiny lobster, including but not limited to product packaging, customs entry forms, bills of lading, brokerage forms, or commercial invoices, indicates that the product does not satisfy the minimum tail-weight, the person importing such spiny lobster has the burden to prove that such spiny lobster does satisfy the minimum tail-weight requirement or that such spiny lobster has a tail length of 6.2 inches (15.75 cm) or greater or that such spiny lobster has or had a carapace length of 3.5 inches (8.89 cm) or greater. If the imported product itself does not satisfy the minimum tail-weight requirement, the person importing such spiny lobster has the burden to prove that such spiny lobster has a tail length of 6.2 inches (15.75 cm) or greater or that such spiny lobster has or had a carapace length of 3.5 inches (8.89 cm) or greater. If the burden is satisfied, such spiny lobster will be considered to be in compliance with the minimum 6-ounce (170-gram) tail-weight requirement.

(2) See § 622.409 regarding the minimum size limit that applies to spiny lobster imported into any place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States other than Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands.

(3) See subparts S and U of this part for the minimum size limits that apply to spiny lobster imported into Puerto Rico and St. Thomas and St. John, respectively.

(b) Additional spiny lobster import prohibitions—(1) Prohibition related to tail meat. No person may import into any place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States spiny lobster tail meat that is not in whole tail form with the exoskeleton attached.

(2) Prohibitions related to egg-bearing spiny lobster. No person may import into any place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States spiny lobster with eggs attached or spiny lobster from which eggs or pleopods (swimmerets) have been removed or stripped. Pleopods are the first five pairs of abdominal appendages.

In accordance with the framework procedure of the Fishery Management Plan for the EEZ around St Croix, the RA may establish or modify the following items.

(a) Standard open framework procedures. Re-specify maximum sustainable yield (MSY), optimum yield (OY), overfishing limit (OFL), maximum fishing mortality threshold (MFMT), minimum stock size threshold (MSST), acceptable biological catch (ABC), ACL, ACT, sustainable yield level, and other related management reference points and status determination criteria; establish or revise rebuilding plans; revise AMs; modify reporting or monitoring requirements, and time or area closures and closure procedures.

(b) Abbreviated open framework procedures. Gear or vessel marking requirements, maintaining fish in a specific condition, size limits, commercial trip limits, recreational bag and possession limits, changes to the length of an established closed season of no more than 1 day, and gear modifications to address conservation issues including responding to interactions with species listed under the Endangered Species Act or protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.