11-16

[liphunter]

Hit the water yesterday, around 9:00. Went for the crappie to start. I swear my crappie skills have diminished somewhat. That was the one thing I could actually catch with some consistency.  Anyway blanked on that for a few hours. Gave up on that and went for the bass. Didn't waist anytime and went straight to the ned. Was really wanting some fish. The 12 to 15 inch spots were hungry. With an occasional small LM thrown in.  Caught five legal spots, ( 12 inches) the biggest being a 15 inch, and took three home. I haven't got to go out in a couple weeks. I really had an enjoyable day. Weather was great, and caught a meal. A little surprised about the number of people that were out there. Dear people, get a job!!! lol  Was in Sons creek arm. Water temp was 46 to 47 all day long. Slightly stained to clear... Mike

 

[Walcrabass]

Olfishhead,

   You are obviously a person with a great deal of knowledge on this topic. I greatly appreciate you contributing to the post.

What is the expected life span of a Crappie in Stockton Lake? 6 Years?? Maybe they could withstand a couple of bad years to reach the 11" or 12" Length limit??

I remember when the Crappie length was 8" on Stockton and the Bass were 11" ????? Somewhere along the way we bumped it up a little??

 

Walcrabass

 

[olfishead]

I really don't recall the crappie LL being 8" but I was in north MO for several years, so maybe I just missed out on that. However, I do remember when MDC installed the first 12" LL for black bass at Stockton.  I also remember a lot of bass anglers who opposed that regulation, most saying that it would ultimately ruin the bass fishing on STK lake!  (And, that was one of the first length Limit regulations in the country at that time.) As the lake aged and densities decreased from the initial reproductive "Boom" years the LL was increased to 15" to maintain optimal densities and growth rates. It was such a success that now nearly all states have Length Limits for black bass. MDC was a leader in fisheries management at that time.

As for the life expectancy for Crappie, If I my old memory serves me correctly, the oldest crappie that we ever aged from STK was 7 yrs.  But very, very few make it to that age. We always thought that most end up in hot oil by age 5.

Hope this helps!

 

[Walcrabass]

Olfishhead,

  Your reply definitely helps !! Looks like we could expect 5 to 6 years of age for a Crappie if it did not get caught and end up in the oil !!

 I am kind of the old farmer type of guy. If the hog will live long enough and you keep feeding it the hog will get bigger. I think bumping the length limit on the Crappie to 11 inches might be a good idea. We could deal with a bad year or two if we had to do that.

As for the Bass........  I am so grateful for the 12" length on the Kentuckies and I tout the Biologist that instituted it the highest !!!! Smart person !!!

I do believe there is room for a slot on the Largemouth though. Something like cannot keep anything ( for tournaments either) from 17" to 19". My opinion is these are prime spawning size/age Bass. And of course nothing under 15" either.

Thanks for the information. Hugely appreciated.

Walcrabass

[straw hat]

Olfishead, I remember that. The days of Bill Pfleiger and Spence Turner (one of the best trout biologists in my opinion). Ahhh, to be that young again.      

[audiochem]

When will Musky be reintroduced??? During the summer, the bait fish are overwhelming. Trolling for walleye results in too many trash fish compared to many northern lakes where pike and musky are prevalent. There's a misguided fear that musky (or northern) somehow deplete a lake of gamefish. This is been proven wrong time and time again. Actually, they help maintain a better balance.

If Pomme can handle them, I'm pretty sure Stockton can too.

Just my $0.02

[Dutch]

10 hours ago, audiochem said:

When will Musky be reintroduced??? During the summer, the bait fish are overwhelming. Trolling for walleye results in too many trash fish compared to many northern lakes where pike and musky are prevalent. There's a misguided fear that musky (or northern) somehow deplete a lake of gamefish. This is been proven wrong time and time again. Actually, they help maintain a better balance.

If Pomme can handle them, I'm pretty sure Stockton can too.

Just my $0.02

My guess would be never as they tried pike and tiger muskie with limited results.

[liphunter]

Just a touch off topic. But I have wondered if any of our southern states have given any consideration to peacock bass. Probably all kind s off reasons not to do that, but it would be interesting. 

[straw hat]

I believe that Texas has some in a couple of lakes or they use to anyway.

[olfishead]

I'm pretty sure Dutch is right. Muskies are expensive to raise, take up a lot of hatchery space, and they don't reproduce naturally in MO. That's one of the reasons smaller lakes were picked for Muskie stockings. It would be too expensive to stock the numbers required to establish a viable population in a lake the size of STK.  And, Muskies in Pomme don't really seem to make an appreciable difference in the rough fish populations. Also, In the early 70's Northern Pike were stocked in Stockton, later when they reached 30+ inches they became floaters due to warm water stress and bacterial infections thought to be caused by such rapid growth that their immune system could not keep up with their body size. (A Short explanation)  Nowadays, most states stay away from stocking any species that weren't once native to their state, with some exceptions for hybrids..