5 Crappie/5 Sunfish Limit

[Traxxx]

What are your thoughts on this subject? For it or against, good or bad? statewide or lake specific?

[Chad Peterson]

I would be for it all the way. I think something is needed to help these fish from getting pounded all the time.

Sniffer

[mainbutter]

I'd like to see the limits on both sunnies and crappies lowered, along with being allowed to use sunnies for bait. I think both might stimulate size structure in the long term. 3-5'' sunnies have their uses too.

[PurpleFloyd]

I would even be for a 6 combined limit to be honest with you.

[goose89]

I would be for it all the way. I think something is needed to help these fish from getting pounded all the time.

Sniffer

+1

[walleye365]

I woundnt mind seeing it state wide.

[thatoneguy]

I woundnt mind seeing it state wide.

+1

[bobbymalone]

For the most part I would be for it, but I will say there are some lakes around the metro that are in need of a serious culling of the potato chip sunny populations.

[highlife4me]

I would be fine with a daily limit of 5 fish but would like to see the possesion limit of at least 10 so a guy could have a decent meal once in a while. I think if we would put the pressure on the ones that go out every day and keep their limit when they already have a freezer full we wouldn't have to consider a 5 fish limit.

[popriveter]

That limit wouldn't work for me. In the winter, I need to make a meal for my wife and my daughter to justify letting me go (in my wife's eyes.) In the summer, I wouldn't notice the difference, but it would wreck my ice fishing season. I'd be okay with adjusting down to 10 on sunfish and perch if research showed it would help size structure.

[popriveter]

I'd prefer instituting size limits. I think a maximum size limit make some sense. For instance, 8" and up must be released immediately. The guy who is willing to make a meal out of 15 6" sunnies hurts no one. The constant cropping off all the largest in a lake has to hurt the population.

[bobbymalone]

That limit wouldn't work for me. In the winter, I need to make a meal for my wife and my daughter to justify letting me go (in my wife's eyes.) In the summer, I wouldn't notice the difference, but it would wreck my ice fishing season. I'd be okay with adjusting down to 10 on sunfish and perch if research showed it would help size structure.

What?!?! Sounds like you should be all for a lower limit.

"sorry honey with these stupid limits I guess I have to fish twice as much to put fish in the frying pan"

[Traxxx]

Just to clarify, it would be a daily limit of 10 fish, 5 of each species.

[jwmiller33]

I'd be all for it! I think the limit is way too high on panfish, especially when guys continue to go back day after day after day until there is nothing left.

I personally don't even keep panfish very often. I can't even remember the last time I kept my limit. When I do keep them, I will keep 2-3 for a meal because that is all I need.

[mainbutter]

there are some lakes around the metro that are in need of a serious culling of the potato chip sunny populations.

[vman11]

That said, I make a meal for 1 with two 8'' sunnies and some veggies, a limit of 5 sunnies and 5 crappies should be more than enough for your family.

I agree. I kept 3-12" crappies and 2-8" bluegills on Sunday and with fixings had left overs for work on Monday. You don't need to keep your limit to eat well.

My family has a cabin with a 5 sunfish limit because of over fishing. I don't mind it, and like mentioned, if 5 isn't enough introduce a few others to the bite.

[popriveter]

If the average sunfish is 8", I'm sure I'd be able to keep fewer fish. This winter, my favorite panfish lake has been producing sunfish that run 6.5-7". My 4 year old daughter eats 6 fillets in a meal. I've watched pretty closely because I can't get her to eat a good-sized meal of anything but fish. My wife eats about 4 fillets. That would leave none for me and none for tomorrow. That stringent a limit would make for a pretty unsatisfying harvest in my circumstance. My work and family responsibilities make it rare to be able to fish more than once in a week, but I love having a limit that allows me to make 2 meals out of a trip. I think a limit of 10 per species would be plenty.

I agree that the balance is out of whack. I don't wannt to be part of the problem. I am bothered by freezer-stuffing and only keep what I will eat in the immediate future. For 8 months of the year, I don't fish panfish.

Enough about me.

Here's a question- If the limit is 5, wouldn't that encourage the harvest of only the largest fish?

The articles I've read seem to indicate that this is how you stunt a population. You need small ones removed at a comparable or greater rate. I've see trapping/removal successfully increase the average size when used as population control.

This leads me to believe we're better off if a fisherman keeps ten 6.5 inchers than we are when he keeps two 8.5 inchers.

It seems to me that this regulation change would pressure us all toward killing only the ones we should be releasing.

Sorry this became a book.

[ANYFISH2]

I like it as lake specific reg, especially on lakes that have current populations of quality size fish 9+" sunfish and or 12+" crappies. Statewide however I am a little apprihensive, My family can easly eat 10 sunfish over a meal.

If I had a choice 10 and 10 would sit quiet fine by me, 5 and 5 seems a little low for me and my usage.

[Esox_Magnum]

Wow you guys are light eaters, a days limit of 50 perch for the wife and I makes 4 good meals... not your avg ordinary little 7-8" one we only keep fat 9's and over 10's. Same goes for gills, takes 10-12 8-9" gills to make a decent meal for us, plus with fries or cheezy hashbrowns. Other than ice season I don't keep any panfish, just lucky to live on world class panfish waters. We jus implimented limits in part to keep the out of staters from coming down and taking 2000-3000 gills a week back home, and yes there were groups from WI and MI coming here 2-3 times a year taking numbers like that.

[walleye365]

lets not get in to the out of staters and over limits.

[Traxxx]

Great discussion thus far.

Couple quick "just hypothetical" numbers I figured for comparison sake:

1 person keeping a daily limit for 30 days of fishing(current limits)= 600 sunfish/300 crappie total=900

1 person keeping a daily limit for 30 days of fishing (10 sunfish/5 crappie)= 300 sunfish/150 crappie total=450

1 person keeping a daily limit for 30 days of fishing (5 sunfish/5 crappie) = 150 sunfish/150 crappie total=300

[walleye365]

the 5/5 sounds even better. Traxx what are your thoughts on this

[Traxxx]

From what I've seen, a lowered limit can only help improve and protect the quality of fisheries in the area. I've fished most all of the lakes in the area and there some lakes that just consistently kick out quality panfish. Most of the ones that seem to produce quality fish, are less pressured or have alot of deep water. I talked with a couple of the local CO's this winter and they said the (SSB) or spawning stock biomass is down significantly from years past. I think fisherman as a whole have become better equipped with today's technology and more knowledgeable, thus putting even more pressure on fish in general. I feel something needs to be done sooner than later to help improve the quality of the fisheries. Reducing the panfish limit, in my opinion, seems to be one good solution.

[Recon]

Not allowing fishing when these 2 species are spawning would be a better answer to the problem of over fishing, just my opinion. During spawning all the high tech equipment really does not come into play it;s just timing and heading for shallow water. Lowering the limit but yet allowing fishing during spawning to me is just plain stupid. We protect walleyes during spawning so why not sunnies and crappies!

[jwmiller33]

If the average sunfish is 8", I'm sure I'd be able to keep fewer fish. This winter, my favorite panfish lake has been producing sunfish that run 6.5-7". My 4 year old daughter eats 6 fillets in a meal. I've watched pretty closely because I can't get her to eat a good-sized meal of anything but fish. My wife eats about 4 fillets. That would leave none for me and none for tomorrow.

Once again, the solution to this problem would be bring one of them (daughter or wife) fishing with you so you can keep a limit for them as well. I don't think a limit is meant to feed an entire family (were not talking big game here) and it shouldn't be that way either. I think a limit should be meant to feed one or two people. If you want to feed 5 people, bring 4 people fishing with you. Simple as pie. If your family likes to eat fish, then bring them out fishing with you, that way you can keep their limit too as well as being able to introduce them to a lifelong hobby and have good bonding time with your kids/significant other.

Traxx is completely right with the amount of technology severly impacting fisheries. With lakemaster chips, fancy vexilars, side imaging, HD sonars on the boat, etc, fisheries aren't going to be able to keep up with anglers vast expanding knowledge and equipment much longer. Eventually, something is going to give (and I don't think we are going to be getting rid of this technology anytime soon).

[pushbutton]

Not allowing fishing when these 2 species are spawning would be a better answer to the problem of over fishing, just my opinion. During spawning all the high tech equipment really does not come into play it;s just timing and heading for shallow water. Lowering the limit but yet allowing fishing during spawning to me is just plain stupid. We protect walleyes during spawning so why not sunnies and crappies!

+10

[pathogen]

I think the 5/5 limit is fine on some waters, other areas can handle a more liberal limit. The problem is that once an angler is in his car and on the road, it is not possible to determine where the fish were caught. I guess I wouldn't buck at a 5/5 limit although that can be abused as well. I think we all have heard of anglers that make 2 (or more) trips to a lake in a day when there is a hot bite happening, and meat fishermen that fill the freezer will find a way around it. We wouldn't need to worry so much about limits if all anglers used common sense, ethics, and sportsmanship when they are angling. It's too bad those qualities need to come from within an individual and some just don't have it. And you can't legislate those qualities.

[Traxxx]

Most of the fishing pressure occurs during the hardwater and prespawn periods. When they are up shallow before the walleye opener, that is actually the prespawn period. The actual spawn typically takes place after the opener up here, when alot of the pressure has gone down.

[Meat-Run]

10 crappies and 15 sunnies and I would be fine with these limits.

mr

[ozzie]

I fish almost exclusivly for crappies and I would love to see the 5/5 daily with a 10/10 possesion especially during the march to july months for the daily limits.....If your reasoning to go out fishing is to only bring home a meal then please try to find and start enjoying the other aspects of the sport...if its your wife that gives you grief then tell her to come along so you can double your odds and your take home....I like to eat a meal here and there of fish but I probably only bring fish home 1 out of 7 or so trips if that and I will only eat fish that are freshly caught.....and I also have a kid and wife that love fish and I get out once a week but I like to release fish so I can catch bigger fish hopefully in the near future.....It is up to us to protect and have disipline in our fisheries so our children will have good if not great fishing in the future!!!