Freshwater Seasons, Sizes & Limits
Species |
Minimum Size Limits |
Season |
Creel Limit |
Remarks |
|
American Eel |
9 inches |
Open Year Round |
Daily—25 Possession—25 |
||
Baitfish |
None |
Open Year Round |
Daily—35 in aggregate Possession—35 in aggregate |
||
Bass (Largemouth and Smallmouth) |
12 inches or as provided for by |
CLOSED |
Daily—5 in aggregate Possession—10 in aggregate |
Catch and Release is permitted at all times. |
|
Carp |
None |
Open Year Round |
Daily—15 Possession—30 |
||
Chain Pickerel |
14 inches |
Open Year Round |
Daily—5 Possession—10 |
||
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 |
36 inches |
Open Year Round |
Daily—1 Possession—2 |
||
Northern pike |
30 inches |
Open Year Round |
Daily—2 Possession—4 |
||
Shad |
CLOSED |
Catch and Release is permitted at all times. |
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Striped Bass and |
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. |
|
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 |
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. See Put-and-Take Trout Fishing Areas. |
|
Walleye |
Minimum Size: 15 inches year round, and during January 1–April 15 the minimum size is 15 inches with a maximum size of 20 inches, in the Potomac River mainstem approximately 0.5 miles upriver from Chain Bridge to the spillway in Cumberland. |
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 |
||
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 |
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Atlantic Sturgeon, Shortnose Sturgeon, and Bivalves/Shellfish |
CLOSED |
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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. |
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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. |