Missouri Fishing Fees and Regulations

Missouri is a fisherman's paradise from lakes for catching bass and walleye to rivers that are stocked with rainbow trout. If you are in Missouri during the summer you will invariably hear someone say "we're going to the lake this weekend." Missouri has specific requirements, as do most states, for fishing and daily limits. Here is your guide to the regulations for Missouri fishermen.

Fees

A resident fishing permit for Missouri is required if you are from age 16 until 64. Youth and seniors do not need a fishing permit in Missouri except for trout. A resident fishing permit is currently $12 and covers fish, frogs, mussels, clams, turtles, crayfish, and live bait.

A non-resident fishing permit is $42 and covers the same fish as above. If you don't want a yearly fishing permit a daily permit is for $7. If you are a Missouri resident, the better deal is clearly an annual permit. A trout tag is required when you are not in a trout park. The fee is seven dollars for an annual trout tag and under age 15 the fee is $3.50. Trout parks assess a daily trout tag such as Bennett Spring State Park near Lebanon in central Missouri.

Permits can be purchased at any local permit vendor or from state offices and trout parks across the state. A Missouri resident may also purchase a lifetime fishing permit that varies its fee by the age you are when you buy the permit.

Limits

Trout have the strictest limits in Missouri as far as how many you can catch per day due to the amounts of trout released into parks each year. Trout season starts March 1^st and goes until October 31^st each year in trout parks. There is a daily limit of four trout with a length limit only on brown trout at fifteen inches.

Catfish have no length limit but there is a limit of ten per day on channel catfish, and five each for blue catfish and flathead cats. You may catch six black bass per day with a 12 inch length minimum. If you are in the Ozarks stream area you may only fish from May 22, 2010 until February 28, 2011 for black bass. Walleye are limited to four fish at a minimum of 15 inches.

The most liberal catch limit on fish in Missouri is for white and yellow striped bass and crappie. White and yellow bass have a daily limit of 15 and you can't have more than four fish longer than 18 inches. Crappie has a limit of 30 fish per day without a length limit. The possession limit, that is the number of fish you can have with you at one time, is double the daily catch limit per species.