Catch and keep fishing season for trout begins on Saturday. Anglers will be able to catch and keep up to four trout, regardless of size. Salvador Mondragon, a fisheries biologist with the Missouri Department of Conservation, said it’s time to hit the lakes and ponds.
“We do that obviously so people can harvest fish and enjoy fishing,” he said. “But also, once the water temperatures get too warm this summer, those fish can stress out and they can eventually end up dying in these small ponds or lakes.”
Anglers between the age of 16 and 64 are required to have valid Missouri fishing and trout permits.
“There’s no length limit, but there is a daily limit of four, which means that you can go to a body of water, catch four fish, come back the next day, and catch four more fish,” said Mondragon. “One of the confusions or a lot of questions that I get about it is ‘can I go to one body of water and catch four fish, go to the next body of water and catch four fish on the same day?’ – that is not allowed.”
To find out where to fish for trout, visit the Missouri Department of Conservation’s website.
“It’s a valuable resource that people really enjoy utilizing,” said Mondragon. “We have trout streams, but sometimes individuals are located really far from these trout streams. So, by having these urban trout ponds or winter trout fisheries, it allows people to drive down to their local pond and be able to catch these trout during the winter. It gets people outdoors, enjoying the resources.”
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