AbstractSubstantial improvement is possible in economic returns for the North Carolina bay scallop fishery by delaying the opening of the season beyond its traditional date. A general bioeconomic harvesting model was developed for use in determining the optimal season opening/closing schedule for a seasonal fishery with the control specified as an on/off switch. One hundred and twenty separate scenarios were created by setting five exogenous variables to reasonable alternative values. The optimal season is contrasted with the unregulated case for each scenario. The optimal opening was typically two to three weeks later than the model of past practices.