Statewide Limits & Regulations

TWRA’s goal is to manage each species of fish with statewide creel and length limits where possible. However, many waters, because of their unique characteristics, require individual creel and length limits. These regulations improve fishing for all anglers.

Minimum Length Limits restrict the harvest of fish below a specified minimum length. For example, a 15-inch minimum length limit allows the angler to keep fish 15 inches or greater. Fish less than 15 inches cannot be harvested. In waters where length restrictions are in place, anglers may not be able to harvest quite as many fish, but they will enjoy catching more fish—as many as two to three times more.

Slot Limits or Protected Length Ranges (PLRs) allow anglers to harvest fish above and below a specified length range. For example, a 14–18″ PLR protects fish in the 14- to 18-inch length group. Anglers may harvest fish that measure less than 14 inches and they may harvest fish that measure over 18 inches. For a protected length range to be effective, anglers must harvest fish below the protected range.

Possession Limits: The total possession limit is twice the daily creel limit. You may not have more than the daily creel limit with you while afield. It is unlawful to have, while afield, any fish which has been altered so that its species and/or total body length cannot be determined.

Pole or Rod Limit: There is no limit on the number of poles, except at Center Hill and Dale Hollow Reservoirs (pages 17 and 18).

• » Statewide Hook Restriction

Unless otherwise restricted in this guide, anglers are restricted to a maximum of 3 hooks per rod, pole, or hand-held line. Single, double, or treble hooks each count as one hook. This restriction does not apply to the Sabiki or piscatore rigs, which are a set of small lures attached along a single line.

• » Banned In Tennessee

It is unlawful to possess or transport live specimens of the following animals:

• Silver carp
  (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix)
• Bighead carp
  (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis)
• Black carp
  (Hypophthalmichthys piceus)
• Blueback herring
  (Alosa aestivalis)
• New Zealand mud snail
  (Potamopyrgus antipodarum)
• Round goby
  (Neogobius melanostomus)
• Rudd
  (Scardinius erythrophthalmus)
• Ruffe
  (Gymnocephalus cernua)
• Snakeheads
  (all members of the Family Channidae)
• Swamp eels
  (all members of the Family Synbranchidae)
• Zebra mussels
  (Dreissena polymorpha)

Statewide Creel and Length Limits

The following are the creel and size limits that apply statewide. Several waters have exceptions to these limits. Refer to the pages listed in red at the bottom of this page to see exceptions to the statewide regulations. If you are fishing a location that does not have exceptions listed in this guide, then the statewide limits apply.