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Lake of the Ozarks and its tributaries
The rule for this water, with the receipt.
Special regulations for Lake of the Ozarks and its tributaries, Osage River below U.S. Highway 54, and Truman Lake and its tributaries, as the state words them
Camden County · Lake · MO
Has its own special rules
How to read this page:Official text quoted regulationParsed fields from the ruleDerived calculated from rulesContext conditions, not a ruleAdvice our suggestion
Today's rule hereParsed
- Season
- Not captured yet - consult the statewide regulations
- Gear
- You may take fish by pole and line, trotline, throwline, limb line, bank line, and jug line.Statewide
- Bait
- Not captured yet - consult the statewide regulations
- Poles
- If you use more than three poles (or two poles on the Mississippi River) at any one time, the additional poles must be labeledStatewide
| Species | Daily limit | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|
Black bass | See size rule | min. 15" minimum length limit on largemouth and smallmouth bass; 12" minimum length limit on spotted bass | This water |
Bullhead Varies by water: limit 50, except on the Mississippi River which has a daily and possession limit of 100 (Line Methods) | Daily limit: 20 | - | Statewide |
Carp Varies by water: limit 50, except on the Mississippi River which has a daily and possession limit of 100 (Line Methods) | Daily limit: 20 | - | Statewide |
Carpsucker & Quillback Varies by water: limit 50, except on the Mississippi River which has a daily and possession limit of 100 (Line Methods) | Daily limit: 20 | - | Statewide |
Catfish (Blue) | Daily limit: 5 Possession limit: 10 | min. Size limit: none | Statewide |
Catfish (Channel) | Daily limit: 10 Possession limit: 20 | min. Size limit: none | Statewide |
Catfish (Flathead) | Daily limit: 5 Possession limit: 10 | min. Size limit: none | Statewide |
Crappie (Black and White) | Daily limit: 30 Possession limit: 60 | min. Size limit: None | Statewide |
Goggle-Eye (Rock Bass) and Warmouth | Daily limit: 15 Possession limit: 30 | min. Size limit: minimum 7" | Statewide |
Muskellunge Varies by water: 36" minimum, limit 1 | Daily limit: 1 muskellunge or 1 northern pike Possession limit: 2 | min. minimum 36" | Statewide |
Northern Pike Varies by water: limit 1 | Daily limit : 1 muskellunge or 1 northern pike Possession limit : 2 | min. None | Statewide |
paddlefish Gigging, snaring, and snagging for any species is not allowed after taking and possessing the daily limit of 2 paddlefish. | the daily limit of 2 paddlefish | - | This water |
Pickerel | Daily limit: 6 Possession limit: 12 Length limit: None | - | Statewide |
Shovelnose Sturgeon Varies by water: 30" maximum | Daily limit: 10 Possession limit: 20 Length limit: 30 inch maximum | - | Statewide |
Bass: White, Yellow, Striped & Hybrids | Daily limit: 15 Possession limit: 30 Size limit: You may keep up to four fish longer than 18” per day. | - | Statewide |
Trout Varies by water: No size limit on rainbow trout; 15 inch minimum for brown trout in streams (Trout Areas) | 4 | min. Rainbow: none1 Brown: 15" minimum in streams | Statewide |
Common Snapping | Daily limit: 2 Possession limit: 4 Limits are combined total of all species | - | Statewide |
Soft-shelled | Daily limit: 2 Possession limit: 4 Combined total of all species. | - | Statewide |
Walleye and Sauger Varies by water: 15" minimum | Daily limit: 4 Possession limit: 8 | min. minimum 15" | Statewide |
Catfish Varies by water: limit 5 (Blue catfish) | 10 | - | Statewide |
Pickerel (chain and grass) | 6 | min. None | Statewide |
crayfish, freshwater shrimp, and non-game fish | A combined total of 150 crayfish, freshwater shrimp, and non-game fish. | - | Statewide |
bullfrogs and green frogs Varies by water: limit 8, combined total of both species. (Bullfrogs and Green Frogs - Daily limit) | A combined total of 8 bullfrogs and green frogs. | - | Statewide |
Mussels and clams | 5, combined total of all species (except Asian clams, which may be taken and possessed in any number). This limit applies to live and dead animals. Two shell halves (valves) shall be considered 1 mussel or clam. | - | Statewide |
Turtles | 2, combined total of all species. | - | Statewide |
Rainbow trout | See size | min. 12" to 20" protected slot length limit | Statewide |
Crappie | 15 fish daily limit | min. 9" minimum length limit | This water |
Blue catfish | 10 fish daily and possession limit; the daily limit may not contain more than 2 bluecatfish more than 34" | min. 26" to 34" protected slot length limit | This water |
The official text, verbatimOfficial text
Straight from MO's official regulations. Rules in force today lead; out-of-season rows are dimmed. Nothing is paraphrased. Not legal advice: verify the posted rules at the water.
Whole water
- paddlefishDaily limit the daily limit of 2 paddlefishGigging, snaring, and snagging for any species is not allowed after taking and possessing the daily limit of 2 paddlefish.
- paddlefishDaily limit snagging, snaring, and grabbing are not allowed for any species after taking the daily limit of 2 paddlefishGear snagging, snaring, and grabbing
- Black bassSize 15" minimum length limit on largemouth and smallmouth bass; 12" minimum length limit on spotted bass
- CrappieDaily limit 15 fish daily limitSize 9" minimum length limit
- Nongame fishfrom March 15 through April 30 only (dates as written)Gear Snagging, snaring, and grabbing are allowed from March 15 through April 30 only.
- PaddlefishSize 34" minimum body length, measured from eye to fork of tail
- paddlefishDaily limit a daily limit of 2 paddlefishGear snag, snare, or grabNo person shall continue to snag, snare, or grab for any species after taking a daily limit of 2 paddlefish.
- Blue catfishDaily limit 10 fish daily and possession limit; the daily limit may not contain more than 2 bluecatfish more than 34"Size 26" to 34" protected slot length limit
How this answer was assembled
- StatewideStatewide lake rules are the base layer: default season, gear, bait, and limits.
- This waterSpecial rules written for this exact water replace the statewide defaults where they speak.
- Emergency orderEmergency orders in effect today override everything else. They sync quietly when the phone has coverage and never lock you out of the app.
Where this rule applies
This water is not yet drawn on the map. Its rules are captured and receipted; the geometry ledger records exactly why it is not drawn (an ambiguous name match or a gap in the source data), and it will never ship as a guess. Each rule above describes in the state's own words where it applies, and those written descriptions are the authoritative boundaries.
What are you fishing for here?Advice
Pick from the species named in Lake of the Ozarks and its tributaries's rules. Setups are checked against the gear rules in force today, and your picks are remembered on this device only. These are rule-aware suggestions, not a claim about what is biting; advice, not law, and the rules above govern.
Receipts
Statewide rules
StatewideChecked against this official source on July 10, 2026.
Special rules - Lake of the Ozarks and its tributaries
This waterChecked against this official source on July 10, 2026.
Local services near Lake of the Ozarks and its tributaries
Tackle shops, guides, and boat launches that serve this water will appear here - a separate lane below the rules, so a local business can reach you without ever getting between you and the regulation.
Run a shop or guide service on Lake of the Ozarks and its tributaries? Get listed.