Freshwater species guide

Crappie Fishing

Black crappie spend much of their time offshore feeding on small fish in lakes or in large, slow-moving clear-water rivers, and they nest in colonies from February to April.

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Crappie

Every charter here names crappie on its own website, checked on the captain's own site

Check before you keep a fish. Seasons and limits change, sometimes in the middle of a season, and a court or an agency can change them overnight. Seasons and limits are set state by state. The ones on this page are Florida's, copied from FWC in Sep 2026 and listed with their source at the foot of the page. We are not a regulatory authority. Confirm the rule for the water you will fish with your captain or with that state's wildlife agency.

Where to fish for crappie

70 charters name crappie on their own website, across 51 towns in 2 states.

State records for crappie

The heaviest crappie each state has certified, biggest first.

StateWeightWhereYearAngler
Indiana 4 lb. 11 oz. Private LakeJennings County 1994 Willis Halcombsource
Massachusetts 4.62 lb Jake's PondPlymouth 1980 James Crowleysource
New Mexico 4lb. 9oz. Black River 1983 Oscar Bucksource
Delaware 4.56 lb — 1976 Marvin Billipssource
Illinois 4.55 lb Kinkaid LakeJackson 2017 source
Maryland 4.4 lb Farm Pond 2004 Jason D. Morrisonsource
Pennsylvania 4 lb. 3 oz. Hammond LakeTioga Co. 2000 Richard A. Pinosource
Iowa 4.08 lbs. Sundown Lake Sept John Fostersource
Mississippi 3.46 lb Lake Charlie Capps 2004 Tom Boxsource
North Dakota 3 lbs 4 oz. Lake Oahe Febr Don Newcombsource
Nebraska 3.25 lb Kea Lake 2017 Brent Stephenssource

Each from that state's own records page, linked on every row. A location links to its town only where the agency named that town — a record logged to "Gulf of Mexico" or an offshore block belongs to no city. Weights are printed as the agency prints them. Records are certified by the state and can be broken at any time.

About the fish

SizeFlorida record 3.83 pounds
Where it livesLakes or large, slow-moving clear-water rivers, much of the time offshore
What it eatsCrustaceans, insects and small fish

FWC says they nest in colonies from February to April, in 3 to 8 feet of water.

From FWC's species profile, checked Sep 2026.

Harvest rules

When can you keep one in Florida?

Seasons and limits are set state by state, and these are Florida's. Crappie is caught by charters in 2 states on this page; ask your captain which rules apply where you are fishing.

Statewide

Florida fresh waters, apart from the waters listed below and the Fish Management Area lakes.

  • All anglersNo closed seasonFWC describes Florida's freshwater fisheries as having no closed seasons.
No statewide length limitSize limit
25 per dayDaily limit. No one may hold more than two days' bag limit of freshwater game fish.

Lake Okeechobee and Lake Talquin

Lake Okeechobee, including the canals, creeks and river sections FWC lists, and Lake Talquin in Leon and Gadsden counties, including specified portions of the rivers and creeks that flow into it.

  • All anglersNo closed seasonFWC describes Florida's freshwater fisheries as having no closed seasons.
Crappie less than 10 inches total length must be released immediatelySize limit
25 per dayDaily limit. FWC sets a length rule on these waters but does not change the bag limit.

Lake Seminole, St. Marys River, Perdido River, Lake Jackson

Jim Woodruff Reservoir (Lake Seminole) within FWC's stated boundaries, the St. Marys River and its tributaries, the Perdido River, and Lake Jackson in Walton County.

  • All anglersNo closed seasonFWC describes Florida's freshwater fisheries as having no closed seasons.
On the Perdido River all crappie must be 9 inches or longer. No length limit on the others.Size limit
30 per dayDaily limit. Possession is limited to 50 fish total, regardless of species, on Lake Seminole, the Perdido River and Lake Jackson.

Gear rules

Crappie are game fish, which may only be taken with pole and line or rod and reel. Where minimum-length or slot-size limits for crappie apply, they may not be filleted, nor their head or tail fin removed, until you are done fishing for the day.

Questions about crappie

How many specks can I keep?

25 a day statewide. Lake Seminole, the St. Marys River, the Perdido River and Lake Jackson in Walton County each allow 30.

Is there a size limit?

Not statewide. On Lake Okeechobee and Lake Talquin, crappie under 10 inches must go back immediately, and on the Perdido River they must be 9 inches or longer.

Can I keep two days' worth on an overnight trip?

FWC caps possession at two days' bag limit of freshwater game fish, and each angler is responsible for their own limit.

Seasons, sizes and bag limits on this page were copied from FWC, statewide bag and length limits and FWC, special bag and length limits and FWC, black crappie profile and FWC, methods of taking freshwater fish and FWC, freshwater fishing in Sep 2026. Rules change, sometimes mid-season. Check the current rule with your captain or FWC before you keep a fish.