DFO Pacific Area 18 recreational fishing regulations
Current tidal-water recreational limits, sizes and closures for DFO Pacific Area 18 (Finlayson Arm, Mayne & Saturna Islands, Pender Islands), read from DFO’s own area page and refreshed daily. Last updated 2026-09-11. Openings change in-season and subarea boundaries are set by coordinates — always confirm on DFO before fishing.
Closures in effect today (September 16, 2026)
Seven closure areas are in effect. A closure overrides the area-wide limits wherever the two overlap.
- Southern Resident Killer Whale (SRKW) Recreational Salmon Fishing Closure — closed to chinook, chum, coho, pink and sockeye (Jun 17 – Nov 30)
- Cowichan Bay and Satellite Channel — closed to finfish - all other species, codfish, greenling, halibut, lingcod and sole or flounder (Aug 1 – Oct 15)
- Pender Island Vessel Restricted Zone — closed to finfish and shellfish (no end date given)
- Saturna Island Vessel Restricted Zone — closed to finfish and shellfish (no end date given)
- Cowichan Bay — closed to finfish (Aug 1 – Oct 31)
- Outer Cowichan Bay — closed to finfish (Aug 1 – Oct 15)
- Coastwide — closed to eulachon (no end date given)
Salmon — area-wide limits
| Species | Subareas | Min size | Daily | Status |
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| Chinook salmon (hatchery and wild combined) | 18-1 to 18-7 and 18-9 to 18-11 | 62cm | 2 | Open |
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| Chinook salmon (hatchery and wild combined) | 18-8 | 62cm | 0 | Non Retention |
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| Chum salmon | 18 | 30cm | 2 | Open |
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| Coho salmon (hatchery and wild combined) | 18 | 30cm | 2 Combined Total * Consisting of no more than: 2 - Hatchery - marked; 0 - Wild - unmarked | Open |
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| Pink salmon | 18 | 30cm | 4 | Open |
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| Sockeye salmon | 18 | 30cm | 0 | Non Retention |
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Finfish other than salmon — area-wide limits
| Species | Subareas | Min size | Daily | Status |
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| Codfish | 18 | | 8 | Open |
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| Eulachon | 18 | | 0kg | Closed |
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| Finfish - all other species | 18 | | 20 | Open |
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| Greenling | 18 | | 3 | Open |
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| Halibut | 18 | | 2 | Open |
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| Herring | 18 | | 20kg | Open |
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| Lingcod | 18 | 65cm | 1 | Open |
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| Mackerel | 18 | | 100 | Open |
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| Northern Anchovy | 18 | | 20kg | Open |
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| Pacific sand lance | 18 | | 5kg | Open |
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| Pacific sardine | 18 | | 100 | Open |
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| Rockfish - Yelloweye | 18 | | 0 | Non Retention |
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| Rockfish - all species except Yelloweye | 18 | | 1 | Open |
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| Sablefish | 18 | | 4 | Open |
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| Sculpin | 18 | | 8 | Open |
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| Shark - Basking | 18 | | 0 | Closed |
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| Shark - Blue | 18 | | 0 | Closed |
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| Shark - Brown Cat | 18 | | 0 | Closed |
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| Shark - Great White | 18 | | 0 | Closed |
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| Shark - Salmon | 18 | | 1 | Open |
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| Shark - Sixgill | 18 | | 0 | Closed |
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| Shark - Tope | 18 | | 0 | Closed |
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| Shark - all other species | 18 | | 0 | Closed |
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| Skate | 18 | | 1 | Open |
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| Smelt | 18 | | 20kg | Open |
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| Sole or Flounder | 18 | | 8 | Open |
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| Spiny Dogfish | 18 | | 0 | Non Retention |
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| Surfperch | 18 | | 8 | Open |
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| Tuna - Albacore | 18 | | 20 | Open |
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| Tuna - Pacific bluefin | 18 | | 20 | Open |
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| Tuna - all other species | 18 | | 20 | Open |
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| White Sturgeon | 18 | | 0 | Non Retention |
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| Wolf Eel | 18 | | 0 | Non Retention |
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| Trout (hatchery and wild combined) | 18 | 30cm | 2 Combined Total * Consisting of no more than: 2 - Hatchery - marked; 0 - Wild - unmarked | Open |
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Bivalve shellfish and snails — area-wide limits
| Species | Subareas | Min size | Daily | Status |
|---|
| Clam - Butter | 18 | | 20 | |
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| Clam - Horse | 18 | | 6 | |
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| Clam - Littleneck | 18 | | 60 | |
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| Clam - Manila | 18 | | 60 | |
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| Clam - Razor | 18 | | 12 | |
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| Clam - Softshell | 18 | | 25 | |
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| Clam - Varnish | 18 | | 60 | |
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| Clam - all species combined | 18 | | 60 | |
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| Cockles | 18 | | 25 | |
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| Geoduck | 18 | | 3 | |
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| Mussel - Blue | 18 | | 75 | |
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| Mussel - California | 18 | | 25 | |
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| Mussels - all species combined | 18 | | 75 | |
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| Oyster - Olympia | 18 | | 0 | |
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| Oyster - all species except Olympia | 18 | | 12 | |
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| Scallop - Pink and Spiny | 18 | | 75 | |
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| Scallop - Purple-hinged rock | 18 | | 6 | |
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| Scallop - Weathervane | 18 | | 6 | |
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| Scallop - Weathervane and Purple-hinged rock combined | 18 | | 6 | |
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| Snail - Moon | 18 | | 2 | |
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| Snail - other | 18 | | 75 | |
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| Whelks | 18 | | 75 | |
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Crab — area-wide limits
| Species | Subareas | Min size | Daily | Status |
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| Crab - Box | 18 | | 1 | Open |
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| Crab - Dungeness | 18 | 165mm | 4 | Open |
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| Crab - Dungeness and Red Rock combined | 18 | | 4 | Open |
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| Crab - King | 18 | | 0 | Closed |
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| Crab - Puget Sound King | 18 | | 1 | Open |
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| Crab - Red Rock | 18 | 115mm | 4 | Open |
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| Crab - Shore | 18 | | 25 | Open |
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| Crab - other | 18 | | 4 | Open |
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Other invertebrates — area-wide limits
| Species | Subareas | Min size | Daily | Status |
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| Abalone | 18 | | 0 | Closed |
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| Barnacles - Giant | 18 | | 6 | Open |
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| Barnacles - Goose | 18 | | 2kg | Open |
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| Invertebrates - all other species | 18 | | 20 | Open |
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| Limpet | 18 | | 75 | Open |
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| Octopus | 18 | | 1 | Open |
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| Sand Dollar | 18 | | 6 | Open |
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| Sea Cucumber | 18 | | 12 | Open |
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| Sea Star or Starfish | 18 | | 6 | Open |
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| Sea Urchin | 18 | | 12 | Open |
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| Shellfish - all other species | 18 | | 20 | Open |
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| Shrimp - Ghost | 18 | | 50 | Open |
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| Shrimp including prawn | 18 | | 125 | Open |
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| Squid - Opal | 18 | | 200 | Open |
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| Squid - all other species | 18 | | 20 | Open |
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Source: DFO Pacific Area 18 recreational fishing. Check the Fishery Notices for changes newer than the update date. This page is a reading of DFO’s page, not a substitute for it, and does not reproduce the coordinate-defined subarea boundaries.
Fishing areas in Area 18
All BC fishing areas and tide stations