While the Bering Sea Red king crab and opilio crab fisheries are the largest crab fisheries in Alaska, near-shore waters support several minor crab fisheries that provide opportunities for small-boat fishermen and additional indicators for crab value. In 2006, Tanner crab harvest from various near-shore crab fisheries in Alaska was 3.5 million pounds and harvest of near-shore king crab in Southeast Alaska and Norton Sound was just under 1 million pounds.

The two most significant state-waters winter crab fisheries are the Kodiak Tanner crab and the Southeast Tanner and golden king crab fisheries.

The 2007 Southeast Tanner crab and golden king crab fisheries are set to open concurrently on February 10. The 2007 GHL for SE golden king crab is 525,000 pounds, unchanged from 2006. SE Tanner crab harvest will be controlled with season length rather than by GHL. 2006 Tanner crab harvest in the region was 890,000 pounds. Combined ex-vessel value of SE Tanner and golden king crab was $3.5 million in 2006.

The 2007 Kodiak district Tanner crab fishery opened January 15 with a GHL of 800,000 pounds, down 62 percent from the 2006 GHL of 2.1 million pounds. Preliminary price reports indicate an advance price of $1.75 per pound, a significant improvement over the final price of $1.40 per pound in 2006.