Editing Abalone (section)

====United States====
[[File:Workers drying abalone shells in the sun in southern California (CHS-1399).jpg|thumb|Workers drying abalone shells in the sun in southern California, ''circa'' 1900]]
[[File:Japanese Abalone Diver.jpg|thumb|A young Japanese abalone diver in California in 1905]]
[[Image:White abalone Haliotis sorenseni.jpg|thumb|right|Two highly endangered white abalone: Prohibitions on commercial and recreational harvest of this species have been 
in place since 1996.]]
Sport harvesting of [[red abalone]] is permitted with a California fishing license and an abalone stamp card. In 2008, the abalone card also came with a set of 24 tags. This was reduced to 18 abalone per year in 2014, and as of 2017 the limit has been reduced to 12, only nine of which may be taken south of [[Mendocino County, California|Mendocino County]]. Legal-size abalone must be tagged immediately.<ref>{{harvnb|State of California|2008|loc=§29.16(a)}}</ref> Abalone may only be taken using breath-hold techniques or shorepicking; scuba diving for abalone is strictly prohibited.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{harvnb|State of California|2014|loc=§29.15(e)}}</ref> Taking of abalone is not permitted south of the mouth of [[San Francisco Bay]].<ref>{{harvnb|State of California|2014|loc=§29.15(a)}}</ref> A size minimum of {{convert|7|in|mm|abbr=on}} measured across the shell is in place.  A person may be in possession of only three abalone at any given time.<ref name=cal15c>{{harvnb|State of California|2014|loc=§29.15(c)}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|State of California|2014|loc=§29.15(d)}}</ref>

As of 2017, abalone season is May to October, excluding July. Transportation of abalone may only legally occur while the abalone is still attached in the shell. Sale of sport-obtained abalone is illegal, including the shell. Only red abalone may be taken, as [[Black abalone|black]], [[White abalone|white]], [[Haliotis corrugata|pink]], [[Haliotis walallensis|flat]], [[Green abalone|green]], and [[Northern abalone|pinto]] abalone are protected by law.<ref name=cal15c/> In 2018, the [[California Fish and Game Commission]] closed recreational abalone season due to dramatically declining populations. That year, they extended the moratorium to last through April 2021.<ref>{{cite news |last=Duggan |first=Tara |date=13 December 2018 |title=California abalone season sunk until 2021 to give stressed population time to rebuild |url=https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/article/No-abalone-diving-allowed-in-California-until-2021-13460882.php |work=San Francisco Chronicle |location=San Francisco, California |access-date=26 March 2018 }}</ref> Afterwards, they extended the ban for another 5 years until April 2026.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Blackwell |first1=Michelle |title=CDFW stalls abalone season for another five years |url=https://www.advocate-news.com/2021/04/01/cdfw-stalls-abalone-season-for-another-five-years/ |access-date=16 January 2025 |date=April 1, 2021}}</ref>

An abalone diver is normally equipped with a thick [[wetsuit]], including a hood, [[Wetsuit boots|bootee]]s, and gloves, and usually also a mask, [[Snorkeling|snorkel]], [[Diving weighting system#Weight belt|weight belt]], abalone iron, and abalone gauge. Alternatively, the rock picker can feel underneath rocks at low tides for abalone. Abalone are mostly taken in depths from a few inches up to {{convert|10|m|ft|abbr=on}}; less common are freedivers who can work deeper than {{convert|10|m|ft|abbr=on}}. Abalone are normally found on rocks near food sources such as [[kelp]]. An abalone iron is used to pry the abalone from the rock before it has time to fully clamp down. Divers dive from boats, kayaks, tube floats, or directly off the shore.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

The largest abalone recorded in California is {{convert|12.34|in|cm|abbr=on}}, caught by John Pepper somewhere off the coast of [[San Mateo County, California|San Mateo County]] in September 1993.<ref name="Smookler2005p76">{{harvnb|Smookler|2005|p=76}}</ref>

The mollusc ''[[Concholepas concholepas]]'' is often sold in the United States under the name "Chilean abalone", though it is not an abalone, but a [[Muricidae|muricid]].