should we keep large females ready to spawn?

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Just a little poll to see what you guys think. I am guilty of it myself. Loading the basket in the heat of the battle just to get home and notice most of my fish are big females or at least keeper females full of eggs. I then wonder if I did the right thing. I have made it a habit now of letting the really nice females with eggs go and keeping the larger males which are usually around eleven inches anyhow. What do you guys think? I know for a fact I have not caught a three pound crappie and don't figure on it as long as myself or others are keeping two and a half pound fish.. . . . . . Just a thought

Throw them big girls back. So I can catch 'em :biggrin

We usually only keep the males. Don't fish much til the spawn is done. More little fishes for all of us to catch.

I've been fishing the "Big E" since the mid 70's and I can tell a sharp drop off of the fish population over the last 15 years. State biologist insist after doing their surveys that there are literally billions of crappie in Lake Eufaula and maybe they're right. I just know that back 20 years ago I could come to Lake Eufaula and return home with an ice chest full of crappie filets. I don't throw back a large female, but I do toss anything less than 10" back and feel good about doing my part for all the kids in the future.

I hear you stink. I do feel it's ok to take some big girls but not keeping everyone of them when your rip them of their nest. I remember twenty years ago too. .I won't keep anything under eleven and only take what I can eat. After years of cleaning out old fish from the freezer with a date from three years ago I figure about twelve will make a pretty good meal for two. I love catching fish and crappie being my favorite. . . They are for sure tasty but sometimes long John silvers is pretty good too. . .Lol some days just free the fighter so your kids and grandkids can catch them too.

I'm really glad to hear others feel similar to me. I think Oklahoma should have a 10" min length and I never keep anything under that. Before I moved back to OK, I hadn't cleaned a fish in many months, trying to eat the ones I already had. Still ended up giving away a freezer full of filets that wouldn't make the move and only clean what I catch now that I can eat in a reasonable amount of time.
As to the question, I don't plan to keep any spawning females anymore. I know they are very prolific spawners but, they have their natural predators and the number of crappie fishermen have increased dramatically over the past few years with no additional water damned up to fish from. I also know I'm a minority of one that feels this way. I just enjoy the thump and don't have to catch anything to have a great day on the water.
Just my personal opinion and you have a right to yours.

I'm 50-50 on this. If I know an under 10 won't survive and I'm on a lake that allows it, it'll go in the live well or bucket. I don't especially keep or return all females. But like you Bob, I just enjoy what God allows us catchin or not.

I'll definately keep any fish that isn't going to survive, legal of course. I just feel I've taken a my share over the years and catching and releasing is just as much fun as keeping everything.

Does it really matter if you keep a female full of eggs or keep her mid winter with no eggs?

I don't keep a lot of fish either. Keep enough to eat and give to the kids.

I'm new to the OK forum but crappie fished from South Carolina to here and I've experienced some extremely great fishing to not so great. I must admit I miss the fishing I had so close to my house in Conway, AR. Lake Conway has some great fishing and I've had some of my most wonderful memories on that lake. That's why when I heard they finally implemented a restriction of 10" or bigger only , I wanted to commend the AGFC. I would see so many people keep almost everything they'd catch. Man it would just tick me off. I've also tried to only keep what I know I can eat and not waste as well as only keeping 10" and bigger. However I have kept my fair share of females but don't make it a common practice. I occasionally fry the eggs and they're really good. But I don't keep very many and don't do it all the time. So I guess I'm on the fence as well.