Size Limit

Would like to see how many people, think we should have a 10 in. size limit on crappie, state wide. I for one would like to see this happen, reason being i helped DNR catch fish a few years back to stock their ponds, now mind you the fish were brim. In one pond they put only large fish and the other they put small to med. fish. After one spawning season the ponds were drained and the results surprised all of us, even the DNR people. The pond with small to med. fish had the best results, their were 10 times more fish raise in this pond. Would like to hear what everyone thinks. Tommy Vaughan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the 10 inch size limit would be great !!! that's my size limit now if ain't 10 it don't go in my livewell !!! and if we could get it changed statewide that would be great !!!!!!

strmwalker

Tommy I would also like to see a 10'' size limit. We are already seeing the effects of the 8'' limit. Hard to believe there was that many small fish kept but I have seen more fish in the 8'' size than ever before. What a difference a 10'' size limit would make in a few years along with the 20 fish creel.

Be careful what you ask for, not all waters can handle this. Smaller impoundments will over populate pretty quick. We have several in MS that have a size limit but it is mostly to try for trophy fesh, got nothing to do with the well being of the lake.:twocents Been to some meetings and talked with the decision makers afterwards to get that info. Most all the waters in MS don't have a size limit.

Has been proven that 8-10 inch fish are better sapwners. I personally don't like keeping fish under 12. On the rare occasion got a fry coming up and don't have enough in the freezer I will but never under 10 inches. I can't see what people see in an 8 inch fish. That is just tiny. With that being said I would even go for a 12 inch limit. Like Rees said I don't know if every lake could accommodate such a limit but to have a 10 inch limit state wide would be great. Then maybe you could take a couple lakes like Clark's hill and santee, lakes that can handle it and make a 12 inch limit. Just my opinion but it has got to help. Look at grenadas crappie master results from this spring. 14 fish weighing in at well over 30lbs. That is insane but they have a 12 inch limit. I spoke to a dnr officer about this at the sportsmans classic and he told me it would take a lot of lobbying especially since we just got the limits changed. Tommy if you want to pursue this then I am all in and just let me know anything I can do to help

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Originally Posted by Rees Guide

Be careful what you ask for, not all waters can handle this. Smaller impoundments will over populate pretty quick..

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Agreed 100%. Also you run the risk of the body of water having stunted fish and good luck catching one 8 inches let alone 10 inches. Some lakes could use a 10 inch limit but some should not have it.

I don't see anything wrong with fisherman keeping a 8'' legal fish, it's the bucket loads of small fish that some keep that has to stop.

I don't know of any of our small lakes that doesn't get fished hard for crappie and most were in need of help to rebuild the crappie populations.

10in size limit is fine with me as long as its statewide .dont want to have to read the rules an regulations book for every different lake or river.i think it will take another year or so to really see the results of the 8 in size limit.

I've seen men taking bucketfuls of small fish out of Russell and that certainly didnt hurt the numbers of small fish still in there. As long as limits are enforced I dont see anything wrong is a man wants a limit of small fish to eat off the bone. Taking some small fish out leaves more food for the larger fish to eat and grow from IMO. I would agree with a 10" limit but not a 12" limit....even thogh I set my standards at 12" most days since I dont plan on keeping more than me and the wife can eat anyway. I never keep anything under 10" anyway except for those rare times when I want a mess on the bone so about 6 of the 9" fish suit me the best for that.

Now, that being said, Ga. law didnt go along with SC law on the new creel and length limits in the bodies of waters that both states share so I wouldnt be looking for that cooperation with larger size limits either.

I like to eat fish scaled with tails and fins larger fish don't fry or taste as good.
The 8" rule is working on Lake Greenwood usually only have 5 or 6 good eating fish out of a limit. The big are fun to catch. The ole boy that only gets to go every nnow and then should be able to keep a few to eat.

I fish greenwood a lot and cannot tell a difference since the 8 inch limit was placed. As far as the creel limit I rarely keep 20 fish myself. 10-12 fish fileted makes a good bag for the freezer. If everyone had the same concept it would help out a lot and the size limit wouldn't be as big a deal. But it is hard to patrol a man who catches a limit, takes them to the bank, and runs out for another. That happens all the time and hurts more than anything else. Greed is a horrible thing. It would be easier to check 20 live wells for short fish than it would be to chase one boat around the lake all day checking how many limits it hauls in. And let me rephrase my post from earlier. I don't mind people catching 8 inch fish it's within the law and legal. Just not for me. I didnt believe how many people got mad when they put the size limit on them. That is crazy because anything less than 8" is all head. But I have a lot respect for all of the game I chase.

I`m not the brightest star in the sky-- ok === having said that I have a not so bright question.
how can you take an 8to10 inch fish laying say 2000 eggs (figure of speech) and get more fish out of it then you can a 13 to 14 inch or better fish laying say 8000 (another figure of speech) or more eggs :dono? === having said that does it not seem that leaving the big fish for breeding (if more fish in the water is what you want) would be the thing to do?==still :dono
my :twocents would be put a slot on them say 8to 12 or 13 inch at most. lets your little ones grow up into the keep range and your big ones stay for breeding.== again saying all that-- if the voting booth was at the edge of my yard I would not walk across it to vote because it don't matter to me== just my :twocents

I'm not sure how it works either, I am no biologist. But I do read anything and everything related to crappie. It has been proven that smaller fish spawn the best. Apparently they lay stronger eggs and have a lot better survival rate.

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Originally Posted by brush pile

I'm not sure how it works either, I am no biologist. But I do read anything and everything related to crappie. It has been proven that smaller fish spawn the best. Apparently they lay stronger eggs and have a lot better survival rate.

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There's also another factor there, small fish breed small fish, period. I would not want my fisherie built on half pound fish on purpose, you think Grenada, Washington, and Arkabutla in MS have huge crappie because they are spawning off dinks, NOT. :twocents Fish here in those 3 lakes will be in the 12 inch range in 3 years, yes they are prime lakes but for some reason they just keep producing huge fish but aren't overpopulated with small fish. Grenada had been tuff this year but what that has been caught have been real nice.

Thanks for everyone input, as brushpile said the survival rate of the small fish fry are 10 time that of the larger fish. Yes some lakes have larger fish than others and that is due to the water condition and bait and the type of fish that are in the lakes meaning white or black crappie.

That's right tommy the conditions of the lakes are what make the size fish, not the fish that spawned them. That is why I would never think of trying to make lake Murray a 12" trophy lake. It just doesn't have the food or habitat to provide 3lb fish. But santee and Clark's hill are prime areas to do something. I don't think the hill would work like butch said due to it being split with 2 states. But I would be very satisfied with a 10" limit. Just wish we could get everyone to obey creel limits.

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Originally Posted by brush pile

That's right tommy the conditions of the lakes are what make the size fish, not the fish that spawned them. That is why I would never think of trying to make lake Murray a 12" trophy lake. It just doesn't have the food or habitat to provide 3lb fish. But santee and Clark's hill are prime areas to do something. I don't think the hill would work like butch said due to it being split with 2 states. But I would be very satisfied with a 10" limit. Just wish we could get everyone to obey creel limits.

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That is the biggest problem we have...

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Originally Posted by brush pile

That's right tommy the conditions of the lakes are what make the size fish, not the fish that spawned them. That is why I would never think of trying to make lake Murray a 12" trophy lake. It just doesn't have the food or habitat to provide 3lb fish. But santee and Clark's hill are prime areas to do something. I don't think the hill would work like butch said due to it being split with 2 states. But I would be very satisfied with a 10" limit. Just wish we could get everyone to obey creel limits.

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Brush pile I have to disagree with the part about it doesn't matter what size fish spawns. Not saying all fry spawned from a small fish will be small but a fry from a larger fish has a head start. It is absolutely no different than a deer herd, why do we cull out 5 year old 6 points, not what we want breeding. Genetics is genetics, if all you have is 5 year old 6 points in your county then it will be very rare to have a new born grow into much more but if your county has 5 year old 10 points with 20 inch spreads then you expect the new borns to grow to be nice.
On Grenada, Washington, and Arkabutla people come from all over the country expecting to catch a three pound fish, is it because of the lake conditions they produce these regularly? Partly I suppose but I say that the other factor is the size of fish spawning to start with. A 3 pounder will lay out 4 or 5 times more eggs than a 1/2 pound fish will and a larger egg at that.
Over 30 years ago BASS did a study on largemouths and found without exception an eight pound bass' fry outgrew the fry from a 1 pound bass in the same environment.
We can just agree to disagree and I am fine with that but basketball players don't have midgets for parents, maybe 1 out of 10,000, but not the norm.

Using the same analogy as Rees Guide, I feel genetics is key here. Having fished both Mississippi and South Carolina's waters, and having caught white crappie from each state. A fish from each lake, the same length will not weigh the same. Mississippi fish are much thicker and heavier. Forage base is one critical aspect, but not the only one. Nutrient rich waters grow fish faster. Lakes used for flood control are nutrient rich, therefore whatever eggs that hatch and survive will grow to maturity faster, and will begin spawning sooner repopulating the lake. A state wide size limit is not feasible unless the size limit is kept relitivity short, say 8". The genetics and nutrients of some waters will not allow for it without stunted fish. Each body of water would have to be judged individually which will never happen.

I am asking a curiosity question because I sure don't know the answer. What do you think would be affect of closing fishing during prime spawning season? Seems to me a month off would up the number of spawned fish by a huge margin. One mature female can produce thousand of eggs and that is the fish most folks target during the spawn.
They do this for most game and some species of fish already.
I am aware there are some who only fish when the fish are spawning and easier to catch.

PS Ink I sent you a PM about golf.

Searay I don't think it would help anything and may well hurt. Are yall hurting for numbers???
Two of the lakes I speak of here in MS are flood control and some years we loose more than 50% of our crappie population to the spillway, some years are worse and some not so bad. Spawn has so much more to do with numbers than anything from what I can see and read. Here on Grenada we lost a class of fish either 3 or 4 years ago and maybe both, it had nothing to do with fishing pressure. The weather and conditions of the lake at the time of spawn is responsible for this. On Grenada rite now you will either catch a fish 14 inches or better or it will be a short fish (under 12), the 11 to 14 inch fish are just not there as a result of a missed spawn. Last year TONS (litterly) of 1.75 and up fish were caught during the spawn on Nader, you could walk from one boat to the other pretty much, and we are catching a bunch of 3 and 4 inch fish now (last years spawn).
I am a firm believer that pressure to a point is our friend, its not a popular mindset but mine rarely is.:biggrin Let them take the smaller fish if they want, that leaves the bigger ones to grow.

I would think your lakes would over populate within a few short years if fishing during the spawn was outlawed. Then the lake would begin filling with stunted fish due to the competition of available food. I'm just guessing though.

Apparently, the DNR does their homework and utilizes their resources to give their best educated guess as far as limits on the different species of fish and game. When Carolina imposed the 20 fish creel and 8" size limit I called the Ga. DNR home office and had a lenghty conversation with one of the officers there. Now I know SC and Ga didnt agree this time (and that may change later on) but the changes werent made off the fly....instead from the data they gathered. Ga's data just reflected something different. Since then, I've also questioned the allowable deer that each person can harvest because I "think" our herd numbers are down and I see that number hasnt changed either. I guess what I'm saying is I'm glad our game laws arent made from shooting from the hip (like alot of us thinks happens sometimes) but rather from collected data each and every year. I'll just assume the DNR is looking our for our best interests. And as far as the same boat carrying limits to the bank and coming back for more and more....I'd report them in a heartbeat! They might be hard for the law to catch but atleast I'd know I did my part and let them know who they were.

I guess I was thinking about the lakes that the White Perch population has exploded. I know they target spawning fish such as crappie and have nearly wiped out the white bass. Just thinking it would lesson the impact the perch are having on them.

I have no idea on how to set the size limit other than what has been mentioned. It would not hurt to have bigger fish in our lakes for sure. I can only hope DNR can set the size limit to fit the fishery that will affect the population for years down the road for all of us. As far as 8 inch fish on the Catawba river chain it is a good measure for the boat and bank fishermen. I would hate to see someone getting a ticket for a fish under 10 inches caught from the bank. Some how it just burns my blank to see wardens checking for short fish by any fisherman. I think your personal size limit is going to be best for you as a sport or meat fisherman in all our waters. I like bone in fish just like some of you and as a guide or just a sportsman who wants big fish you can keep your size limit to suit you. 10 inch rule would hurt a lot of fisherman who can't do or get to the fish you can

Let me back up a little. I am not totally out ruling genetics as I know this is a big part. I just don't believe it is as big a part as nutrients and habitat. The fish have got to eat and find cover to hide from predators to be able to stand a chance of making it to trophy size. Without those two you have no good genetics. Same as deer. They have got to have the same things to make a trophy. In South Carolina we do not have the vast farmlands like the Midwest. Therefore you do not see the 180" class deer. Between the lack of nutrients and the long season, mixed with a sorry limit system you will never see that kind of trophy. My point is without giving the animals the chance mature how do you know what the genetics are. Instead we go out and catch and kill before they get to be 2 years old and benefit the herd or school

I only eat the small ones, the big ones taste too strong. if the size limit goes up I will get sneaky and continue to eat the small ones. some of us aren't pros and can only catch a few runts to make the gas purchase worthwhile. If you want to, self impose and leave us less fortunate fishermen alone

10" would be fine with me, I use a 10" limit now and it has to be a fat 10" for me to keep..

I can tell you one lake I fish has used to have a 14" length limit. You'd catch 100 crappie between 13-13.75 and be lucky to get your 2 14" fish. They have since lowered it to 12" and allowed 5 to be taken. Still a lot of size, but the fish look healthier. The lake up the road from it went to 10" minimum and it really helped. Farm ponds you better keep any you catch.