New Regulation for Crappie in Effect March 1, 2019 at Wappapello Lake

Everyone, I received word last week that the regulation proposal for Wappapello Lake crappie was approved by the Commission. The regulation will go in effect March 1, 2019. The new regulation is worded as: The daily limit of thirty (30) crappie may not include more than fifteen (15) fish more than 9" in total length.

• The new regulation will provide more opportunities for anglers to harvest fish during poor growth years.
• It will allow harvest of the slow growing Black Crappie. I encourage anglers that want to keep fish under 9" to keep Black Crappie. Black Crappie are more robust at smaller sizes than the White Crappie and reducing their densities should improve the fishery.
• Only allowing 15 fish over 9" will keep some of the bigger fish in the lake a little longer, which should provide more consistency in the fishery during poor growth years.

We will continue to intensively monitor the fishery to determine the effectiveness of the regulation change. If you are interested in the input we received at the public meetings and online click on the link below.


https://huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/fishing/protect-missouri-fishing

I know many of you have been anxiously waiting for a change at Wappapello Lake. I am very excited to monitor the fishery and see how it responds to the change.

The White Crappie population in 2019 should be good and similar to what we saw in 2018. Our surveys in the fall of 2018 showed roughly 26% of the White Crappie are 9 inches or greater. Growth improved to an average of 8.7 inches at age 3 and was similar to what we saw in 2017. Growth was as low as 7.4 inches at age 3 in 2015. We also hinge cut a total of 70 trees along the shoreline on the lower end of the lake this winter.

Feel free to call me if you have any questions.

Happy Fishing!

Dave Knuth
Fisheries Management Biologist
Missouri Department of Conservation
(573)290-5858 ext.4434
[email protected]

Thanks, Dave....

I'm guessing that the same thing was approved for Smithville? Hadn't heard an official word.

You are correct. The proposal was approved for both Smithville and Wappapello Lakes.

I have check crappie to be 9 inch before , Now I may have to check they are not 9 inch long . I'm so confused !!!! All in All may be it will get rid of some of the small black crappie .

Dave,
Wappapello Lake does have some black crappie that grow over 9 inches, but a very small proportion of the population. Since the 9 inch regulation was put in place, most of the black crappie were protected and therefore their numbers increased. The regulation change is not species specific. It is just how it is stated 30 daily but not more than 15 fish can be over 9 inches. I was only suggesting that if anglers want to keep fish under 9 inches to keep black crappie. This is only because they will never grow well in Wappapello Lake and it will be good to reduce the densities of that species.

If you are still confused give me a call at the number above.

Dave Knuth

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Dave Knuth

If you are still confused give me a call at the number above.

Dave Knuth

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Dave, be careful what you're askin' there.

Gonna take more than one phone conversation to unconfuse "got crappie"!! Ol' boy is gonna be calling you 20x a day! :Rofl

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Originally Posted by got crappie

Now I may have to check they are not 9 inch long . I'm so confused !!!!

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Just fish with Joe he'll show you the UNDER 9!

Congrats Dave, job well done! I'm really looking forward to watching how this works.

I'm sure that a change like this is a difficult decision. The key issue is public acceptance of more complicated regulations. It will go a long way towards making this a success if we all help educate our fellow fishermen. It's important that we not be condescending to those who may not be happy with change. If you see someone you think may not understand the new regulations be friendly and share what you know about the biology.

Thanks to all the hard working people that made this possible.

Any thoughts on why the black crappie don't grow well in wappapello?

Man-Made reservoirs usually have very little aquatic vegetation, especially if the water levels fluctuate a lot. Even stable reservoirs can take over 50 years to develop aquatic plant communities. These lakes are built over previous uplands and they do not have the seed stock of aquatic plants to populate the lake with vegetation. Black crappie rely on aquatic insects for a larger portion of their diet than white crappie do. Aquatic vegetation is essential to producing substantial numbers of aquatic insects. Aquatic vegetation can produce 100x the insects than bare bottom. While I don't manage Wappapello, I would be surprised if this isn't the reason there. Hopefully Dave Knuth will comment soon.

Bajacoop, Black Crappie do not grow in Wappapello Lake because their diet mainly consist of insects and they prefer clear vegetated waters. Wappapello Lake's clarity and extreme water level changes does not support the vegetation needed for aquatic insects to thrive. Only about 2% of the Black Crappie reach 9 inches. Pool 1 at Duck Creek CA is a great example of a habitat type where Black Crappie do very well. It is clear and full of vegetation and supports a good invertebrate community.

Let me know if you have any other questions.
Dave