Just another day as a CDFW officer
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2026 7:37 pm
California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Over the weekend, a wildlife officer was using a spotting scope to observe two individuals at Van Damme State Park. The officer watched a male and female in the intertidal zone taking purple sea urchins when he observed the female discreetly conceal what appeared to be an abalone down her pants, an unconventional storage method, to say the least.
The officer left his observation point and contacted the pair in the parking lot before they reached their vehicle. During a license and catch inspection, the officer asked the female what she had concealed. She then produced a small abalone from inside her pants.
Suspecting that this abalone might not be the only one, the officer requested assistance from a female wildlife officer to conduct a search. Once this was explained, the suspect voluntarily produced a second abalone from her pants, confirming the officer’s suspicions.
No additional abalone was found. The female was cited for the illegal take of two abalone. The male subject was found in compliance and did not possess any abalone.
Over the weekend, a wildlife officer was using a spotting scope to observe two individuals at Van Damme State Park. The officer watched a male and female in the intertidal zone taking purple sea urchins when he observed the female discreetly conceal what appeared to be an abalone down her pants, an unconventional storage method, to say the least.
The officer left his observation point and contacted the pair in the parking lot before they reached their vehicle. During a license and catch inspection, the officer asked the female what she had concealed. She then produced a small abalone from inside her pants.
Suspecting that this abalone might not be the only one, the officer requested assistance from a female wildlife officer to conduct a search. Once this was explained, the suspect voluntarily produced a second abalone from her pants, confirming the officer’s suspicions.
No additional abalone was found. The female was cited for the illegal take of two abalone. The male subject was found in compliance and did not possess any abalone.