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Maryland

Fishing

Fishing

Freshwater Seasons, Sizes & Limits

Nontidal

Species

Minimum Size Limits

Season

Creel Limit

Remarks

American Eel

9 inches

Open Year Round

Daily—25

Possession—25

Baitfish
(Including Madtoms)

None

Open Year Round

Daily—35 in aggregate

Possession—35 in aggregate

Bass (Largemouth and Smallmouth)

12 inches or as provided for by special regulations.

CLOSED
March 1–June 15

Daily—5 in aggregate

Possession—10 in aggregate

Catch and Release is permitted at all times. Cannot be used as bait.

Carp

None

Open Year Round

Daily—15

Possession—30

Chain Pickerel

14 inches

Open Year Round

Daily—5

Possession—10

Cannot be used as bait.

Channel Catfish

None

Open Year Round

Daily—5

Possession—10

Crappie

None

Open Year Round

Daily—15

Possession—30

Herring (Alewife and Blueback)

CLOSED

Catch and Release is permitted at all times.

Muskellunge and Tiger Muskie

36 inches

Open Year Round

Daily—1

Possession—2

Cannot be used as bait.

Northern pike

30 inches

Open Year Round

Daily—2

Possession­­—4

Cannot be used as bait.

Saugeye

15 inches

Open Year Round

Daily—5

Possession—10

Shad
(American/White and Hickory)

CLOSED

Catch and Release is permitted at all times.

Striped Bass and
Hybrid Striped Bass
(lakes and ponds)

18 inches

Open Year Round

2 striped bass/hybrid striped bass per day, only one of which may be over 30 inches.

Possession—4, only one of which may be over 30 inches

It is illegal to keep striped bass and hybrid striped bass caught in nontidal streams and rivers. Cannot be used as bait.

Suckers

None

Open Year Round

Daily—30

Possession—60

Sunfish, including Bluegills and Rock Bass (commonly known as Red Eye or Goggle-Eye)

None

Open Year Round

Daily—15 in aggregate

Possession—30 in aggregate

Trout—statewide
(all species of trout)

None

Open Year Round

Daily—2 in aggregate

Possession—4 in aggregate

Different rules apply for Put-and-Take Areas and Special Trout Management Areas. Brown and Brook Trout cannot be used as bait.

Walleye

  • 15 inches year round, except in Potomac River and Deep Creek Lake
  • Potomac River minimum size is 15 inches year round, with a 20 inch maximum size from January 1–April 15 in the mainstem approximately 0.5 miles upriver from Chain Bridge to the spillway in Cumberland
  • Deep Creek Lake has a minimum size of 15 inches year round, with a protected slot between 18 inches and 21 inches. All fish in the slot must be released.

Open year round—Except on Deep Creek Lake and the Youghiogheny River downstream of Route 42 bridge where it is closed from March 1 through April 15.

Daily—5

Possession—10

Cannot be used as bait.

White Perch

None

Open Year Round

None

Yellow Perch

Nontidal rivers and streams

9 inches

Open Year Round

Daily—10

Possession—20

The possession of yellow perch eggs requires prior authorization from the department.

Nontidal lakes and ponds

None

Atlantic Sturgeon, Shortnose Sturgeon, and Bivalves/Shellfish

CLOSED

Special Closures:

1. Magothy River from the base of Lake Waterford Dam downstream for 3,300 feet is closed to all fishing during February, March and April.
2. Severn River and Severn Run from the Route 3 Bridge downstream for 2,400 feet during February, March and April.

Contact Information for Restricted Areas: Baltimore City Reservoirs—for Prettyboy and Liberty (boat permits required) information, rules, and regulations, call 410-795-6150. For Loch Raven call 410-887-7692. Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission Lakes—Triadelphia and Rocky Gorge fishing by permit only. For permits, rules and regulations call the information center at Brighton Dam 301-774-9124.

The following tables summarize rules governing the harvest and possession of fish species that anglers commonly catch in Maryland. This summary does not include all regulated species. Full information and updates are available at dsd.state.md.us/comar/comarhome.html