Bass, crappie & panfish
Bass, crappie & panfish
These are Missouri's everyday catch: the fish many people want on a lake or creek. The statewide limits below are the starting point. Your lake or stream may set a stricter rule. Read the MDC special-waterbody page and the access sign before you keep fish.
Check your water first
Missouri's statewide limits are only the starting point. Hundreds of lakes, rivers, trout areas, urban lakes, and stream stretches set their own daily limits, length limits, slot limits, bait rules, or catch-and-release rules that override the statewide number. The local rule is usually posted on a sign at the access.
The statewide starting point
Statewide limits — bass, crappie & panfish
These are the statewide defaults. Your specific lake, river, or stream stretch may set stricter rules — check the sign at the access.
| Fish | Daily | Possession | Length | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black bass (largemouth, smallmouth, spotted — combined) | 6 | 12 | Impoundments: none. Streams: 12″ min. | Ozark streams close to harvest in spring (see below). |
| Crappie (white & black — combined) | 30 | 60 | None statewide | Many lakes set a 9–10″ minimum or a smaller daily number. |
| White, yellow & striped bass + hybrids (combined) | 15 | 30 | No more than 4 over 18″ per day | Some reservoirs set special striper/hybrid rules. |
| Goggle-eye (rock bass) & warmouth | 15 | 30 | 7″ min | Several Ozark streams set an 8″ minimum. |
| Walleye & sauger (combined) | 4 | 8 | 15″ min | Some big reservoirs raise the minimum to 18″. |
| Muskellunge & northern pike (combined) | 1 muskie OR 1 pike | 2 | 36″ min | One fish total between the two species. |
| Sunfish (bluegill, green, longear, redear) | No statewide limit by pole & line on most waters | — | No statewide limit by pole & line | Read the sunfish note — alternative methods and many lakes do cap them. |
Full seasons & limits: MDC Fishing Seasons & Limits.
The sunfish rule (it's subtle)
Why bluegill work well for families
By pole and line, Missouri sets no statewide length limit and no statewide daily limit on bluegill, green sunfish, longear, and redear — which is why they're the great family fish. Two real catches: by gig or bow, sunfish over 5 inches must be released and the nongame 20-a-day limit applies; and many city and community lakes (and some conservation areas) cap sunfish at 10 or 20 a day. So check your water — they're not truly unlimited everywhere.
Ozark-stream spring closure
Black bass take a spring break in the Ozarks
On Ozark streams, black bass harvest is closed from March 1 until the Saturday before Memorial Day — catch-and-release only in that window. Harvest runs from late May (about May 23, 2026) through the end of February. Impoundments, non-Ozark and northern streams, the Mississippi River, and the far southeast stay open year-round.
Example to verify: Lakes like Table Rock and Lake of the Ozarks raise the largemouth/smallmouth minimum to 15″ (12″ for spotted bass). Confirm each lake.
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