So guys I am new and would like to just say Hi huge fishing enthusiasts. So recently I was crappie fishing at a small reservoir maybe 90acres in surface area and noticed guys keeping way to many crappie and to small of crappies the pressure is nuts. This really bugs me we pay for the state to manage these water so all can enjoy. However the actions of a few affect so many. LUCKILY most guys don't know its a good saugeye spot and the pressure for them is low but it won't take long to destroy the crappie population there does anyone else see this kind of problem ?
welcome to ogf james. this is a good forum to get questions answered about anything. personally I haven't seen a lot of slobs out there but I have seen my share. I am guilty of turning in some slobs that was using gill nets to catch more white bass than anybody should catch. if I see someone breaking the law I am not above calling the dnr on them. its guys like the ones you seen keeping illegal fish that gives us all a black eye. turn them in.
sherman
Welcome to the site James lucius. I see the problem fairly often, more so in the spring. Not sure where the solution to the issue lies though. The management of the small upground reservoirs in NW-OH are somewhat split between the city and the state. What is good for the water supply is not always good for the fish, and vice versa. It would be nice to see some panfish limits put in place but that is tough to determine unless done so on a lake-by-lake basis. Word spreads so quickly now when the bite turns on in the spring, the DNR should be able to catch wind and at least show up to have their presence be known. It might make a few people think twice.
Just by your description...... i would be willing to wager I know which city reservoir you are talking about. Granted, i could be wrong, because there are probably a few others that i know come close. It is sad to see so many fish taken in a really short period of time. The lake I am thinking of goes through a cycle with the crappies every few years. Banks will be lined with fisherman for a year or 2...... then you are lucky to catch a crappie over 6" for 3 years. Only good thing is that those crappie reproduce in such huge numbers that it would be near impossible for fishing pressure to permanently damage the species. Just have to wait a few years for the young of the year to grow.
The fish this year range from 7 to 11 inches there are a few bigger reseviors nearby that don't see nearly the pressure with real slabs but no one fishes them much wish they could shift the pressure for sure. SPREAD it out so future years have quality fish this will lead to a rough couple years ahead for sure
I remember fishing clyde res and it not being an issue to catch 30-40 fish an evening ranging from 8-11".....now the avg size fish is only 4-6" and im not sure if its a pressure problem or over population and not enough food. You can see balls of 2-3" crappie of a couple hundred fish and watch cat fish swim in and out of them crushing them. Who knows but like stated by Attica a lake to lake limit 100% needs to be put in place to protect the fish.
I agree a 9in minimum state wide in all waters and a daily limit of 20 fish would help greatly truly sad to sit back and watch one of my favorite spots decline because of this.
Yea to me on Crappie most 9" dont even have enough shoulder's to get much off a filet off of. Id love to see it a 10" minimum state wide and it be 10 for small reservoirs.
I would love to see it happen I typically only keep a few normally only fishing for eyes but will keep big gills or crappie on occasion for the frying pan. IT really drives me nuts to see one guy keep 65 fish around the 8inch mark in a few seasons they would be slabs but won't get the chance
Got 48 with a buddy in our sister state to the west. Oh so good......one lake had 0 fish in the shallows one lake was loaded....so good tasting......good luck.....
This was going around a large body of water keep 5 move on.....can't believe how many r truly there........ could have caught way way way more...........
I used to see this on the Maumee alot. Guys walking around with a stringer of 9-10 inch SmallMouth. I wanted to drown them. The legal length limit has really improved the bass fishing around my place
Overpopulation ????? Fished vw res. Tons of paper thin 5-9in crappie s. I was told by dnr to keep everything u catch years ago. How would one go about finding info on sight specific water to see if this is still the case...... we r in transition to a new Warden as far as I know.....email address to the state? Just wandering.......
Van wert is in district 2 you can call and speak to the biologists Monday through Friday there there til 4 I just spoke with him about a week ago. The guy was very informative you can ask about fish population s and stockings, fish survey results for all your fishing spots. Also he can tell ya how and where to go in your area for what er species your chasing. You can get the number of the odnr website just tell them you wanna know about fish populations and such they will patch you through I think the guy over there is Matt or Mike I talk to distrct 3 more cause that's where I live. Should help answers your questions and more
Also keep in mind populations of fish that are stunted can be a result of lack of food, a lack of predators, parasites, or years of over fishing but again the guy at district 2 will know more hope it was helpful
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