Game Fish
Game fishing is great in Missouri! Gear up to angle for 21 game fish species, including bass, catfish, crappie, goggle-eye, muskie, paddlefish, trout and walleye.
Use this section to help you identify Missouri's 21 game fish species.
Missouri's waters support three black bass species as well as striped bass and white bass. Use this section to learn about Missouri's abundant bass fishing opportunities, special regulations and bass-fisheries management.
Stay up-to-date with catfish regulations, learn to identify Missouri's catfish and find good catfish waters. This section also covers safe, ethical and reliable methods for catching catfish.
After bass, crappie are the second most popular sport fish in Missouri. Why? You can find them in almost any water, they're willing to strike simple lures, and they're mighty fine eating. Use this section to get started catching, cooking and conserving crappie.
Rock bass, or goggle-eye, is one of the most sought-after game fish in many Ozark streams and is exceeded in popularity in these waters only by smallmouth bass.
No other freshwater fish offers the combination of size, strength, ferociousness, and "big game" appeal as the muskie. Just the chance of encountering one of these toothy giants is enough to keep die-hard muskie anglers casting for days.
Because dams have blocked its spawning migrations, the Department maintains paddlefish populations in Table Rock, Truman and Lake of the Ozarks with hatchery-produced fingerlings. Use this section to learn about paddlefish, get snagging reports and regulations and help conserve this impressive native fish.
Missouri is home to three species of sturgeon: shovelnose, lake and pallid. You may harvest shovelnose, but lake and pallid sturgeons are protected and must be returned to the water unharmed if captured. Biologists are studying these fish, and they need information and sightings you have on them.
Missouri has great trout fishing. Learn about our trout-rearing and stocking program, get recognition for releasing lunkers and brush up on angling methods.
Renowned as excellent table fare, walleye are one of the most important and sought-after game fish in North America. Often thought of as a fish that inhabits lakes and rivers located in northern latitudes, walleye are native to Missouri’s larger rivers and streams.
