MDC Seeking Public Opinion on Proposed Mozingo Lake Change

The Missouri Department of Conservation is seeking public comment on a potential crappie fishing regulation change for Mozingo Lake at Maryville.

MDC is recommending a creel limit change designed to allow anglers to harvest more crappie but also to increase the number of large crappie.

The change would allow anglers to keep 30 crappie, but only 15 crappie over nine inches could be harvested per person per day.

Mozingo Lake has historically received extremely high fishing pressure for crappie, said Tory Mason, MDC fisheries management biologist.

That eventually resulted in a very low crappie population.

In 2017, the creel limit was changed from a 30-fish to a 15-fish daily limit.

Biologists hoped the harvest decrease would help the remaining fish to reach a larger and harvestable size for anglers.

After three years under the new regulation, crappie recruitment at Mozingo Lake has been very high, Mason said.

A similar regulation change for crappie went into effect at Smithville Lake in 2019 and has been favorably received by anglers.

Anglers can provide comments on the potential regulation change online.

A link to comment is available here.