Size, Season & Creel Limits
Certain waters are closed to fishing for all species from March 18 to April 6, 2024 at 8 a.m. because of trout stocking. Refer to General Trout Information and Trout Fishing for complete lists and exceptions. Regulations in red are new this year. For Delaware River and Greenwood Lake, see Delaware River Regulations and Greenwood Lake Regulations.
Season |
Location |
Minimum Size |
Daily Limit |
||
Largemouth & Smallmouth Bass |
|||||
Largemouth Bass |
Jan. 1–April 14 April 15–June 15 Catch & Release only (all waters) June 16–Dec. 31 |
Statewide (exceptions below) |
12 inches |
5 combined |
|
Lunker Bass Lakes: Alloway, Assunpink, Parvin and Delaware lakes; Splitrock Reservoir |
15 inches |
3 combined |
|||
Smallmouth Bass |
|||||
Conservation Regulations: Ryker Lake |
15 inches |
2 combined |
|||
Northern Pike, Tiger Musky, Muskellunge* |
|||||
Northern Pike |
Open year round March 20–May 20 are Catch & Release only for Echo Lake Reservoir, Mercer Lake, Mountain Lake, Monksville Reservoir |
Statewide |
Northern Pike: 24 inches |
2 |
|
Statewide (exceptions below) |
Tiger Musky & Muskellunge: 40 inches |
1 combined |
|||
Muskellunge |
|||||
Trophy Muskie Waters:Echo Lake Reservoir, Greenwood Lake, Lake Hopatcong & Monksville Reservoir |
Tiger Musky & Muskellunge: 44 inches |
||||
*IMPORTANT: trout may not be used as bait in the Pequest River drainage. |
|||||
Chain Pickerel and Redfin Pickerel |
|||||
Chain Pickerel |
Open year round |
Statewide |
15 inches |
5 combined |
|
Walleye |
|||||
Walleye |
Jan. 1–Feb. 28 March 1–April 30 Catch & Release only May 1–Dec. 31 |
Statewide |
18 inches |
3 |
|
Striped Bass (freshwater only) |
|||||
Striped Bass |
March 1–Dec. 31 |
Statewide |
One @ 28" to a maximum of 31" |
1 |
|
Hybrid Striped Bass (freshwater only) |
|||||
Hybrid Striped Bass |
Open year round |
Statewide (exceptions below) |
16 inches |
2 |
|
March 1–Dec. 31 |
Raritan River (downstream of Duke Island Park dam) |
One @ 28" to a maximum of 31" |
1 |
||
American Shad |
|||||
American Shad |
Open Year Round Season Closed in all other fresh waters |
Delaware River Mainstem (see regulations on Delaware River Regulations) |
— |
2 |
|
Channel Catfish |
|||||
Channel Catfish |
Open year round |
Statewide |
12 inches |
5 |
|
Crappie (Black and White) |
|||||
Crappie |
Open year round |
Statewide |
8 inches |
10 combined |
|
Sunfish and All Other Species with No Specified Creel Limits |
|||||
Rock Bass, White Perch, Yellow Perch, Sunfish (see below for sunfish exceptions), Bullheads, White Catfish, Suckers, Carp, Bowfin, Pumpkinseed and all other species with no specified creel limit. |
Open year round |
Statewide (exceptions below) |
No minimum size |
25 combined |
|
Conservation Regulation |
Sunfish: 7 inches |
10 combined |
|||
Yellow Perch:No minimum size |
10 |
||||
Conservation Regulation |
Sunfish: 7 inches |
10 combined |
|||
Banded, Blackbanded, BlueSpotted and Mud Sunfish |
|||||
 Banded Sunfish* |
 Blackbanded Sunfish* |
Closed |
Statewide |
Protected |
0 |
Bluespotted Sunfish* |
Mud Sunfish |
||||
Freshwater Baitfish (See Baitfish for complete description of gear types and restrictions) |
|||||
American Eel, Banded Killifish, Creek Chub, Fallfish, Fathead Minnow, Gizzard Shad, Golden Shiner, Margined Madtom, Mummichog, and Tadpole Madtom. For Herring, Alewife and Blueback—see Baitfish Regulations (Baitfish). |
Open year round Exceptions In trout stocked waters baitfish may only be taken with hook and line: from April 6 to June 15, or in waters open to fishing during the pre-season closure, from March 18 to June 15. |
Statewide |
No minimum Exception |
35 combined |
|
