Connecticut General Statutes Title 26. Fisheries and Game § 26-232. Taking oysters from natural beds or the Housatonic or Saugatuck Rivers

(a) Any person who (1) between the twentieth day of July and the twentieth day of September, gathers or takes any oysters or shells from any natural oyster bed specified in section 26-193 other than any such bed in the Housatonic River, (2) between the twentieth day of July and the twentieth day of September in any year, gathers or takes any oysters or shells in the Saugatuck River, or (3) between the twentieth day of July and the twentieth day of October in any year, gathers or takes any oysters or shells in the Housatonic River shall be fined not more than two hundred fifty dollars;  provided nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the gathering or taking of shells or mussels by the use of tongs in said Housatonic River below a line drawn from a stake on the west bank of said river, at Quimber's Neck Point, so called, and running thence in a northeasterly direction to a stake on the east side of said river.  Said stakes shall be located and maintained at said points by the selectmen of the town of Stratford, and a certificate of such location by said selectmen shall be recorded in the office of the town clerk of said town of Stratford.  Nothing in this chapter or in chapter 492   1 shall be construed as prohibiting the excavation of material in deepening the channels of navigable waters by work authorized by the United States government.

(b) The Commissioner of Agriculture, upon application of the Stratford Shellfish Commission, may, at any time, close the season for the taking of any shellfish in the Housatonic River for purposes of conserving the resource.