I keep every legal (12" or larger) sandbass and crappie I catch, but then they usually get eaten within the month.

Yes--
I have crappie, redfish , spec trout,
halibut and salmon in the freezer. the last two
were a gift, but I hope to visit alaska this summer
myself.
MO

There are very few, if any, species of fish that I've caught on rod and reel that I haven't eaten at some point.

I've caught and eaten largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, white bass, black and white crappie, various catfish, various bullhead, various bluegill/sunfish, walleye, yellow perch, northern pike, freshwater drum, common carp, smallmouth buffalo, rock bass, various redhorse and other suckers, trout of many species...and so on.

The only fish I can remember for sure that I have caught, but haven't tried eating are chubs, ( A type of large minnow up north ), gar, mad tom ( A very small, slightly poisonous species of catfish. ) and tiger musky.

There may be a few others, but I can't recall them at the moment, nor can I recall every species I've caught and tried eating lol.

I love eating fish of all kinds. I have yet to catch a species of fish that isn't good to eat, either.

But I hate killing trophies of any species these days. So if I want fish to eat, I will only keep the smaller fish within the legal limits.

For example, I do enjoy eating buffalo, but I won't keep buffalo over 10 pounds. Plus they're too much work to bother cleaning most of the time lol.

I won't keep large catfish, and I won't keep and eat bass over a few pounds.

The goes for the larger fish of any species for me these days. I hate to see trophy fish killed when they could be returned to the water for someone else to catch, and enjoy. And to breed more trophy fish.

But I've no problem at all with people taking smaller fish, especially in overpopulated waters.

Selective Harvest helps the species over all.

What I hate even more is to see fish, especially trophy fish, wasted, which is why I don't like bowfishing.

If you're going to eat the fish you shoot, that's fine. But don't waste them, and I'd prefer they didn't shoot the larger fish.

Now, if someone is fishing or bowfishing spefically because he needs food, for example can't afford to go out and buy some fish or other food that week, then I have no problem at all with that person taking fish of any size by any means.

After all, better they eat then starve.

But if that's not the case, then I prefer people harvest and eat smaller fish, and leave the trophies for others to catch, enjoy, and breed more trophies.

Though as long as it's legal I'm certainly not going to go and tell someone he can't do it. He's got the right, after all.

But I personally only keep and eat smaller fish. And I don't do that often anymore, though that's more cause I don't like the hassle of cleaning them these days when I can just go and buy fish at the store lol.

I only eat the big ones.

Just kidding. I do eat crappie, sandies, hybrids, stripers and catfish though.

I would eat some bass i catch out of lake conroe, but then again i don't want to contract any diseases or anything like that-lake conroe water is nasty, like the city's runoff goes into conroe

I don't hold anything against anyone who eats what they catch

I eat crappie, perch, whites and cats. No LM bass, just because I choose not too, have tried them and like the others better. I don't mind if others eat them tho.

I am with texcajun
if it is legal I will keep it and eat it.
but at the same time I have more fishing trips where I get nothing so the few times I do get a legal fish it is mine.

We will eat crappie, sandbass and catfish.

I have to turn my head the other way when someone puts a LMB on a stringer.

We paid a guy $20 one time to throw back a 5 pound LMB that he was going to eat. I wanted to offer him $100...but husband wouldn't go for it and he took the $20 and threw it back.

Don't bash me....only my opinion.

every bodies going to have eat 2lbs. per day just to keep up with one water turkey ..glad theres no short supply of shad (in most lakes) the sport fish would disappear quickly with these "catch all eat all" birds..if they eat 1 sport fish a day each thats to many when you have 40k on one lake for 5 months or more pre year...thats what we all should be worried about
just my .02 cents
aginst protected comerants
billy w.
i'l buy my own bulluts just say the word TPW

I will keep about 200 or so crappie per year. I eat about 50 and the rest goes out to family members. I throw back atleast that many crappie and a bunch oh sandies and hybrid.

Thirteen pounds of LMB in 3 fish on a stinger last year from one trip to conroe. Fed the whole family. 6.75lb LMB from conroe a few years back......mmmmm good. 20lbs LMB in 2 trips from Sam Rayburn last spawn. Fed family, uncles and cousins on memorial day 2005. Whites and crappie and bluegills all good eatin. Keep EVERYTHING I catch that is legal to keep.

Now I have your attention. TPW stocks all the lakes on a regular basis. Go to thier website and see how many LMB were stocked into conroe in 2004. I believe it's close to 1/2 million fry. They keep good records of what kind and how many of what are where and when. When it becomes a problem they add a regulation to cut back on fish taken. They have a handle on it and they aren't about to let the lake get "fished empty".

There's just tooo many fish eaters in this family! Our motto is "catch and release, straight to the grease!!

I am one of those that loves sandies. Catfish is second favorite, but I know if I was a better crappie fisherman, they would rank right up near the top.

Another thing, does anyone feel as if the fish taste better out of one lake? To me, the fish from Texoma, Tawakoni and Fork are much better eating fish. I think all the salt content of Texoma makes it better, don't know why about the other two. Having said that, wonder why I spend so much time on Ray Hubbard, its only 4 miles to the ramp and can almost always get a mess there and they taste pretty darn good too.

Well...I don't want to sound like a pig or a health nut...but we eat 2-3 meals of fish a week that we caught - mostly stripers/hybrids/white bass. We also give a few pounds to family members and when there are fund raisers we help provide fish for the fish frys.

Crappie and very few catfish are on the menu too, but not as often since I rarely fish for them. I ain't proud...LMB hits the menu when they hit my striper jigs

I believe
that catch and release
was invented
by
a very shrewd
fisherman
who
loved
to eat
fish.

me thinks you are right!