Blue catfish Ictalurus furcatus

How they feed

• Water55–85°F, best near 72°
• TideEither, as long as it moves
• MoonEither
• DepthUsually 10–60 ft

Scored against their own temperature range and tide preference first, then wind, weather and warnings. Solunar periods only break ties. How the score works

Season by state

• MarylandYear-round
• VirginiaYear-round
• South CarolinaYear-round
• TexasYear-round
• KentuckyYear-round
• OklahomaYear-round
• DelawareYear-round

The Maryland, Delaware and Virginia months are the Chesapeake-region season. Everywhere else it is carried over by water temperature: a month counts at a spot when its usual water is in the range that marks the mid-Atlantic season (any water temperature), from the spot’s own gauge where it has one and an estimate from air temperature where it doesn’t. Each state lists the months that hold at half or more of its spots. Where the water temperatures come from.

Keep or release

• Delaware tidalno daily limitDelaware tidal catfish (any species, includes invasive blue catfish): no size limit, no daily limit, open year-round.Tidal delaware waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source · 15 days since checked
• Kentuckyno daily limitKentucky: no limit on blue catfish under 35"; only 1 blue catfish a day 35" or longer. Barren River Lake is 15 blue and channel catfish a day, only 1 over 25".Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source · 15 days since checked
• Maryland tidalno daily limitMaryland tidal waters: catfish have no size limit and no daily limit, open all year. DNR encourages anglers to keep invasive blue catfish.Tidal bay waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source · 15 days since checked
• Missouri5 a dayMissouri: 5 blue catfish a day, no statewide length limit. Lake of the Ozarks and Truman allow 10, but blues from 26 to 34" must be released and no more than 2 over 34" kept; Mark Twain Lake has a 26" minimum.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source · 15 days since checked
• Oklahoma15 a dayOklahoma: 15 channel and blue catfish a day combined, only 1 blue catfish over 30".Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source · 15 days since checked
• Potomac River Fisheries Commissionno daily limitTidal Potomac main stem (PRFC): blue catfish have no size limit and no possession limit, open all year.Tidal potomac waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source · 15 days since checked
• South Carolina150 a daySouth Carolina statewide: 150 blue catfish a day (Act 120, effective May 15, 2026). Lakes Marion and Moultrie, the upper Santee and the Pee Dee from the North Carolina line to the US 301 bridge stay at 25 a day, and no more than 2 over 32" may be kept there or on the Congaree and Wateree.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source · 15 days since checked
• Texas25 a dayNo minimum length, 25/day channel and blue catfish in any combination, only 10 of them 20" or longer. Texoma is 15 a day with only 1 blue 30" or longer; Sam Rayburn and Toledo Bend 50 a day.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source · 15 days since checked
• Virginia non-tidal (VDWR)20 a dayVirginia statewide: 20 blue catfish a day, no length limit. On Kerr Reservoir and its rivers, only 1 a day over 32".Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source · 15 days since checked
• Virginia tidal (VMRC)no daily limitVirginia rivers below the fall line, including the tidal James: no daily limit, but only 1 blue catfish a day longer than 32". Above the fall line the statewide limit is 20 a day.Tidal bay waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source · 15 days since checked

Rules change, and they differ by state and often by water. Each spot page shows the limits for its own water. Blue catfish are fished at spots in 7 states: Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia.