Thread: Kentucky lake limit

I personally think everyone should throw anything back over 2 pounds unless it is going on the wall. I wish the would have increased the size limit myself. Statewide, I believe the limit should be 10 inches but I wish KY Lake was at 11 or 12. You get so very little meat off a 9 inch crappie anyway that I never keep them when fishing other lakes and on KY Lake I almost never keep the 10 inch fish either. There are plenty of 11 to 12 inch fish to eat out there.

I only get to Ky Lake once a year, for a week. Same as Jigboy, I rarely keep any 10" fish. I don't find it necessay to keep every fish I catch to have a good trip. There is so many nice fish, I just enjoy catching them.

I've seen some post where guys brag they've caught/kept 1000 (and more) fish per season. Then complain the fishing isn't as good as it used to be, go figure!

Just my 2 cents, but fish over 12inches provide weaker spawns than 8-10 inchers according to everything I have read. At Talquin, a 100% Black Crappie population there is people keeping 50 fish limits near everyday and 15 years ago it was 100 limit between 2 anglers. Back then we were catching bigger fish more consistently. The big difference is cover, we had standing timber then. Now we have alot of underwater stuff, just not as much as back then. I think putting out structure would help more than changing limits. You also might want to try new tactics as, black crappie tend to spread out more and suspend off structure and in open water. Good luck guys, KY Lake is a beautiful fishery.

Originally Posted by crappielimits

Just my 2 cents, but fish over 12inches provide weaker spawns than 8-10 inchers according to everything I have read. You also might want to try new tactics as, black crappie tend to spread out more and suspend off structure and in open water.

I've been fish'n Kentucky and Barkley lakes for over 40 years and I learn something new everytime I go out.

I am one who likes to expand my knowledge base any chance I get and believe me, I study these fish. I read every article I can find, attend seminars, and watch every video I can get my hands on. I also enjoy reading the posts on these forums.

I have read several articles on crappie reproduction and don't recall reading anything about weak spawns from larger fish. I'm not saying it's not true, I just can't find anything to support that statement. I would like to read the data that supports that theory.

I know that in La. the slot limit has helped the Redfish rebound dramatically! They say that letting the larger fish have an opportunity to spawn has had an enormous impact on the population.

As for the Black Crappie vs White Crappie, I find that the Blacks seem to be more structure oriented and the Whites I catch many times (not all the time), are backed off the structure/suspended in open water. I might be going about it backwards. It would't be the first time. Ask my wife! :D

You are right that the fishing has changed here on Ky. Lake over the last 20 years or so.

The population of crappie, over the last 20 years has flip flopped from 70% Whites/30% Blacks to just about the opposite today. From what I've read this is primarily due to several factors but the 2 primary factors are...

1. Years ago most of what we caught were Whites and fishermen around here got the "White Crappie" mindset and overlooked the early movements of the Blacks. This resulted in more Blacks slipping thru the cracks and getting to spawn while the whites were getting caught.

2. Water clarity in Ky. lake has also made the lake more attractive to the Blacks. From what I've read Blacks tend to favor clearer water.

Any feed back would be appreciated.

Wiskers, I've read that the water clarity has impacted the fishery a lot. The Blacks are better suited for the clearer water, which would explain why they are currently outnumbering the whites.

As for the overall condition of Kentucky Lake, I'm not qualified to make any kind of statement regarding spawns (good or poor) or make any comparison to how it used to be.

I do remember my father telling me how years ago my grandfather and other family use to catch boatloads of big crappie every spring. My dad would talk about them filling five gallon lard cans up full with big slabs. I don't know if there was any kind of limit on them back then, and I won't be critical of them for doing it because back then, fish was food!

I know there are more people fishing for crappie now more than ever, but there are also limits on what you can keep, unlike back then. I guess my point with all this is that given the numbers that were caught in my grandfather's day, the fishery as a whole didn't seem to show any significant decline. And there were a lot of people back then filling up 5 gallon lard cans full of Crappie. I'm sure like every thing cyclic, some years were better than others. When the lake was impounded there was numerous amounts of structure created by simply flooding the lake. How much of this still exits? I know many people put out structure.....but overall is habitat to blame for this more than overharvest.

I don't know the answers, but how do other lakes like Weiss continue to put out the numbers of fish year after year despite heavy fishing pressure?

I think fisheries should do more to look into this problem and implement an agressive habitat improvement program for the Crappie. In the meantime I'm all for doing what is necessary to help the save the fishery and will abide by any limits they impose. I don't have to catch a limit of Crappie to be satisfied.....going fishing is good enough for me.

that KY/Barkley Lakes have become infested with Zebra Mussels !! This has helped clear the water clarity, too. And it may be a factor in the decline of the White Crappie, since the mussels filter feed on the same planktons as Crappie fry. Could it not also be possible, that Black Crappie fry have a different diet, and are not impacted as much ??
I've also heard that the lakes went thru a couple of years of drought conditions, and that may have impacted the spawns of those years.
The "grass/water weeds" are also supposed to be making a comeback, and that bodes well for the Black Crappie (which prefer weeds/clear water ... think Canadian border area and Florida )
White Crappie do prefer murky/warm waters, and Black Crappie prefer clear/cooler waters ... so maybe the changing conditions of the lakes has more to do with the domination change, than other factors ?

As to the creel limit reduction, I think it's the easiest, cheapest, and most fair way that the KDFWR knows how to use, to slow down the harvest numbers. We won't know, one way or another, for several more years, if it will help the fishery recover.

... cp

Originally Posted by crappiepappy

that KY/Barkley Lakes have become infested with Zebra Mussels !! This has helped clear the water clarity, too. And it may be a factor in the decline of the White Crappie, since the mussels filter feed on the same planktons as Crappie fry. Could it not also be possible, that Black Crappie fry have a different diet, and are not impacted as much ??
I've also heard that the lakes went thru a couple of years of drought conditions, and that may have impacted the spawns of those years.
The "grass/water weeds" are also supposed to be making a comeback, and that bodes well for the Black Crappie (which prefer weeds/clear water ... think Canadian border area and Florida )
White Crappie do prefer murky/warm waters, and Black Crappie prefer clear/cooler waters ... so maybe the changing conditions of the lakes has more to do with the domination change, than other factors ?

... cp

You are right CP. There are several reasons for the water clearing up here on Ky. Lake. You mentioned Zebra Mussels. Un fortunately my industry (tow boats) and pleasure craft are primarily responsible for the introduction of the Zebra Mussel into the lakes. They attach themselves to the hulls of boats & barges and get a piggyback ride to other river systems. They are also found in ballast water. They are a problem.

Anytime you introduce a non-native species into an ecosystem you are asking for trouble! It takes decades for that system to evolve and adjust to the new addition to the family.

The weeds are coming back too. They made an attempt to keep them out a few years ago but they are on the way back. I for one welcome them but your pleasure boaters and skiers don't like them much. :D They act like a filter and sift out sediment and cause it to settle around the weed beds. That’s one of the ways they get their nutrients.

You are also right that for the last few years the water flow has been down. The age of the lake has also contributed to the clarity. Most of the soil has long since washed off the banks & exposed rock causing less muddy runoff. Many farmers have changed their practices and gone to no-till as well as CRP/Set aside programs. All of these are contributes to the change.

As for the fish population... Anyone who thinks that the crappie population in these lakes is in great shape is kidding themselves or just don't know what it used to be like.

BadBrad mentioned in his last post about the abundance of crappie in the "old day". He was right. I was there. I can remember my granddad & I fishing in Ky. Lake for years and if we didn't catch 150 or 200 BIG crappie a day he thought the fishing was slow! Unfortunately many of our parents and grandparents thought that the fishing would last forever. We know better today.

There used to be no limit. Then they imposed a 60 fish limit, then 30, then 30/ 10 inch, now 20 / 10 in. Folks the horse is already out of the barn! You can say what you want to about how great the new limit is but you'll see 10 or 15fish limits in a few years. When they set the limit at 30/ 10 inch fish I told my dad that it wouldn't be but a few years and they'd drop it to 20. It was a no brainer. I spend between 120 & 150 days a year chasing these fish & I see the changes first hand. The new limit alone WILL NOT fix the problem!

With today's fishing pressure, boats, technology, movement studies, lures, poles, books, videos, etc... A poor'ol crappie don't stand a chance.

Sooner or later they're gonna see how much crappie mean to the local economy and get serious about the problem. It chapps my fanny! You let 1 Elk die and KDFW is jumping thru their butt to see what happened and try to head off a problem. The crappie around here have made millions of dollars for this state over the years and all they can do is slow the leak!

Folks I hate to sound so negative but sometimes the truth hurts!

BTW I don't claim to have all the answers. My tax dollars and licence fees are suposed to pay for people to figure it out.

I have fished both Kentucky and Barkley lakes for over 25 years. I can tell you that I have been fishing in the spring and catching fish one day and not the next. The reason is that the TVA plays with the lake level. They do not care about the fishery. One particular day I didn't think that the level had changed. How surprised I was when a local catfisherman said they drew the lake down some and then let it come back up overnight.

Until that nonsense is stopped you are going to continually going to have problems with the crappie spawn. I was also told by a local about 15 years ago that he would set in his lawn chair ( he lives on the lake) and watch the net fishermen put game fish in their boat. When the authorities are told of this they say it doesn't happen.

A 10" limit is fine but I won't return to Kentucky until this madness is straightened out. They sure want your money but could care less if you catch fish.

Originally Posted by pistolpete

I have fished both Kentucky and Barkley lakes for over 25 years. I can tell you that I have been fishing in the spring and catching fish one day and not the next. The reason is that the TVA plays with the lake level. They do not care about the fishery. One particular day I didn't think that the level had changed. How surprised I was when a local catfisherman said they drew the lake down some and then let it come back up overnight.

Until that nonsense is stopped you are going to continually going to have problems with the crappie spawn. I was also told by a local about 15 years ago that he would set in his lawn chair ( he lives on the lake) and watch the net fishermen put game fish in their boat. When the authorities are told of this they say it doesn't happen.

A 10" limit is fine but I won't return to Kentucky until this madness is straightened out. They sure want your money but could care less if you catch fish.

Forecast may be down a little, but I hope more people feel like you do as that would leave lots more crappie for me! The way you have to fish has changed, but if you spend some time learning your electronics there are still more than enough crappie in the lake to have a great time.

I am not speaking of myself in particular. I am referring to the problem with the quanity limit and the problem with the spawns. I can and have fished in February on the edge of the channels with a Kentucky rig and caught my share of crappie. Thank you very much I can read my electronics as well as you can. I started out with the old Lawrence paper graph and can use my current ones very well.

The point I am trying to make is it is no longer feasible for me to travel 100 miles and pay the prices to catch 20 crappie. It is also apparent that many feel as I do because the resorts and motels in that area no longer are filled in April as they once were.

If I lived on the lake as you do, I wouldn't have a problem with the limit either.Have a nice day.