Thread: Crappie size limit

I am shure this has been discussed before. I would love to see a size limit put on crappie in Indiana. I cant believe that the dnr does so much for bass fisherman and nothing for us. I want to see a 10inch size limit on crappie............ You guys may not agree with me but the states with size limits have bigger crappie. I would almost bet that a 14 to 15 inch crappie is about as good as you can do on a public lake in Indiana. I would like to see that change. Not everybody fishing our public lakes care about the future of crappie. I do and I want to see a size limit.

I would think it would depend on your fisheries. Here in MS we have a size limit on The Big Four and it helps. But they are COE flood control lakes and we loose more fish to the spillway during winter draw down than we do fisherman. A lake that is fairly stable and doesn't loose a lot of fish to the spillway might over populate. We are on 12 or 11 inch minimum depending on which of these lakes you are on and it helps.

In my opinion Indiana has a short growing season and a shad kill with winter freeze up were the southern states have a growing season alot longer if not year round and plenty of shad to eat due to no winter freeze up not sure it would work here in indiana i havent seen any increase of size on bass im still catching alot of 13 inch bass and have for years but i dont target bass much

Its all about selective harvest... Just because its caught doesn't mean it should be kept.
I would rather see the CO's at each boat ramp checking limits in the months of April and May. I have fished here for 15 years now and have guided for 3 years and not one time have I ever been checked for how many fish are in the livewell.
Over harvest is our biggest problem in this state during the peak spawning time.
If we had CO's checking every now and then I would tend to think it would slow down the poachers.
My 2 cents!

Originally Posted by TDHcrappiemaster

Its all about selective harvest... Just because its caught doesn't mean it should be kept.
I would rather see the CO's at each boat ramp checking limits in the months of April and May. I have fished here for 15 years now and have guided for 3 years and not one time have I ever been checked for how many fish are in the livewell.
Over harvest is our biggest problem in this state during the peak spawning time.
If we had CO's checking every now and then I would tend to think it would slow down the poachers.
My 2 cents!

I was down at Paynetown docks crappie fishing. An old man there was keeping everything. Said he didn't believe in any restrictions at all and would keep any and all he caught. That is what's wrong. No Dnr to check him.

Originally Posted by riff

I was down at Paynetown docks crappie fishing. An old man there was keeping everything. Said he didn't believe in any restrictions at all and would keep any and all he caught. That is what's wrong. No Dnr to check him.

Suspect with constant complaining to the state we could get them to hire more dnr officers. Right now they are spread so thin that it is hard for them to do much. Last year I wasn't checked at all for anything, and I was on the water about 150 days. And many of that was at salamonie or mississenwa. I saw some dnr officers, but not very often.

Of course I am fairly familiar with the ones that patrol here, and my boat is fairly easy to recognize on the water, so that may be why. Know down on the white river in indy, at least the stretch I fish sometimes, you are going to get checked.

Tom I agree but I have also seen a lot of bank fishermen keep every 7 inch fish they catch I would support more CO checks AND a size limit even if it is just 9 inches

Originally Posted by kwerdal

Tom I agree but I have also seen a lot of bank fishermen keep every 7 inch fish they catch I would support more CO checks AND a size limit even if it is just 9 inches

and I had a CO tell me and a fishing buddy to keep'em or throw them on the bank as there were too many in the lake. We were fishing Patoka near South Lick Fork 2 years ago.

I like the Illinois procedure, only 10 crappie 10 inches or bigger with the overall limit of 25. I feel it works well

Pepper

I'm with T D H if the harvest was curtailed at spawn time would help. Like any fish that is a good food source for human use, as soon t hits the length limit it is gone. If the limit is 9in as soon as it is caught and is 9 inches it go to pan. if limit is 10 and hits 10 gone, 11 for 11 gone. People are taking more than the legal bag limit and then the fish are of decent size. In my opinion a 8-9, 10 inch fish is a lot more tasty than a 13-15+ fish. Granted the 15+ fish are more fun to catch but if we keep eating them when they are caught that fish's gene that produces big fish is gone forever. Let them spawn. A small 8-10 inch bass is a lot better eating than an 8pound largemouth and we all know someone who has caught an 8+ pounder and just ate it because they could. But that 8 pound Bass will never produce another 8 pounder ever.