Spanning 7,000 acres across Douglas County, Clinton Lake is a beautiful body of water found near Lawrence, Kansas. Clinton Lake is a man-made lake that was created in 1977 during the completion of the Clinton Dam. The Clinton Dam was designed and built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the purposes of flood control, water conservation, water supply, fish and wildlife, and recreational purposes.
Currently, Clinton Lake is surrounded by five parks that are managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. These parks offer plenty of opportunities for hiking, picnicking, camping, hunting, and much more. The lake also offers plenty of boat ramps and accessible shorelines for excellent fishing. Clinton Lake is home to about 25 species of fish, and popular sport species such as walleye and largemouth bass are regularly stocked in the water to keep up with the demand of fishers that travel to the lake. Below are the most common fish species that can be found in Clinton Lake.
Clinton Lake Fish Species
1) Walleye (Sander vitreus)
Walleye are a very popular species in Clinton Lake, and they can often be found on the mud flats and offshore humps in the lake. This species has a brownish-green body that fades to a cream belly complete with dark horizontal lines. These fish are the largest of the perch family, and they average about 11 pounds.
Walleye get their name from their big, glassy pupils, and these eyes look like this due to a reflective layer on the inner eye called the tapetum lucidum, which helps walleye see prey in times of low visibility. This layer makes walleye sensitive to bright light, however, so they often hunt for their prey, like fishes and mudpuppies, at dusk or night. In Kansas, the daily creel limit for walleye is five fish, and there is a 15-inch length limit for the fish caught.
2) Blue catfish (Ictalurus furcatus)
Blue catfish are another great sport fish at Clinton Lake, and they can be found in the deeper areas of the lake. These fish have a blueish-gray back that fades to a white belly, and they possess no spots, unlike channel catfish. Blue catfish generally range between 20 – 60 inches in length, and have an average weight of around 20 – 50 pounds; however, they can easily reach 100 or more pounds if they are older.
Blue catfish have jaws lined with tiny teeth that help them eat just about anything they can catch including insects, fish, worms, and crustaceans. At Clinton Lake, there is a five-fish daily creel limit for blue catfish, and all fish kept must be over 35 inches in length.
3) Channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus)
Channel catfish are a close relative of the blue catfish, and they are one of the most abundant types of catfish in the United States. This species can be found near rocky shores and other covered areas throughout Clinton Lake. Like all catfish, the channel catfish does not have scales and has barbels on the upper and lower jaw; however, the channel catfish can be distinguished by its deeply forked tail, silvery body, and overbite.
These fish grow to about 10 – 20 inches long and weigh anywhere from 2 – 10 pounds. Catfish tend to eat quite a bit of food, so they use their barbels covered in taste buds to sense their surroundings in murky waters and find food like snails, fishes, snakes, frogs, insects, aquatic plants, and even birds. The current daily creel limit for channel catfish is 15 fish.
4) Flathead catfish (Pylodictis olivaris)
Flathead catfish are less abundant in Clinton Lake compared to channel catfish, but flatheads can still be found in areas of the lake with rocky or woody coverings. Flathead catfish are generally bigger than channel catfish, and flatheads are a mottled brown color with a square tail and an underbite.
This species, like the channel catfish, have barbs on their dorsal and pectoral fins, which are used to poke predators or humans that may have startled them. Flatheads are fierce carnivores, and they typically prey on a variety of fish species such as drum, shad, and other catfish species including their own. The daily creel limit for this species in Kansas is five fish.
5) White bass (Morone chrysops)
White bass are commonly found in Clinton Lake near wind-blown points, channel breaks, or along the dam. These fish are a silvery white color, and they wear 6 – 8 black stripes laterally across their bodies. They have an underbite mouth, much like the largemouth bass; however, white bass are more closely related to striped bass.
White bass are a mid-sized fish, and they average about 12 – 14 inches in length and weigh around two pounds. This species is highly aggressive when it comes to feeding, and schools of white bass will hunt together for items such as gizzard shad, perch, carp, and other fish species.
6) Hybrid striped bass (Morone saxatilis x Morone chrysops)
Striped bass hybrids, also known as wipers, are crosses between striped bass and white bass, and they are produced in hatcheries in order to be stocked in bodies of water like Clinton Lake. These fish prefer waters similar to that of true striped bass, in areas that are cool, clear, and deep. Striped bass hybrids have bodies that are laterally compressed and are silver in color with broken dark horizontal lines. This hybrid also has an arched back, much like white bass, in addition to two tongue patches, which they inherit from the striped bass.
Striped bass hybrids grow very rapidly, and they can reach 18 – 20 pounds by eight years of age. These fish travel in schools and will hunt for items such as shad, minnows, crustaceans, and insects. In Clinton Lake, there is a daily creel limit of five wipers.
7) Largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides)
Largemouth bass are typically found in Clinton Lake in coves with vegetation. Largemouth bass get their name from their mouth, which extends past the eye, unlike smallmouth bass. Largemouth bass have olive-green bodies with dark mottling along the back and speckles along the sides.
This species has an average length of 13 inches and will generally weigh 2 – 4 pounds, although the largest largemouth ever recorded was 22 pounds and 4 ounces. Largemouths are carnivores that primarily feed on crayfish but will also eat other fishes and insects.
8) Smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu)
Smallmouth bass are also a common sportfish in Clinton Lake, and they can be found near rocky areas close to the Clinton Dam. Smallmouths are an olive-green color with vertical bands on the side of the body, and they range from 12 – 18 inches in length and weigh around 1 – 4 pounds.
While smallmouths look very similar to largemouth bass, the major distinction between the two is that smallmouth bass have a smaller mouth that extends to the midpoint of the eye. Despite the difference in mouth sizes, smallmouths eat a diet similar to largemouth bass. The current daily bag limit for black bass species combined in Clinton Lake is five fish, and all of the fish must be 18 inches in length or longer.
9) White crappie (Pomoxis annularis)
White crappies are not an incredibly popular catch on Clinton Lake, but the best chances of finding these fish are in highly vegetated areas with a water depth of 12 – 16 feet. This species has compressed bodies that are silvery-olive on the back and silvery-white on the belly. These fish have dark vertical bands along the sides of their bodies, and their gill covers have spines.
During breeding season, males will look slightly different than females because the males will develop a dark throat. White crappies average about 9 – 10 inches long and are around 2 pounds as adults. These fish generally eat smaller fishes like minnows or shad, but they will also eat insects like mayflies. There is currently a daily creel limit of 50 crappies in the state of Kansas.
10) Freshwater drum (Aplodinotus grunniens)
Freshwater drum, also known as sheepshead, is a fish that will most likely be found in the shallow, muddy waters of Clinton Lake. This species gets its name from the drumming or croaking noise males can make with a specific muscle in their body to attract mates. Freshwater drums are characterized by their silver bodies with a lateral line that extends all the way through their caudal fin. They also have a steeply sloping body that gives them the appearance of having a humpback.
This species averages about 10 – 14 inches long and will usually weigh up to five pounds. Drums have large teeth that help them eat a variety of prey at the bottom of the lake including snails, insects, and small fish. These fish can also eat the invasive zebra mussel that wreaks havoc on the lake.
11) Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus)
Bluegills are a very common sunfish in Kansas, and they can be found in shallow, vegetated areas of lakes as juveniles, but adults will tend to be in deeper waters during the day. These fish are characterized by having disk-shaped bodies with an olive green back, an orangish-yellow belly, and a black dot at the base of the dorsal fin. Bluegills get their name from the bluish hue surrounding the gill covers.
This species averages around 7.5 inches in length and weighs around half a pound as adults. These fish have very little mouths, so they will only eat smaller prey such as zooplankton, insects, worms, and snails. Bluegills are a main source of food for many larger fish species such as largemouth bass, so they have adapted to be maneuverable. For instance, this species can make very quick stops by spreading out their pectoral fins.
12) Green sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus)
Green sunfish are less abundant than bluegills, but they can still be found in Clinton Lake in highly vegetated areas. This species has a wider body compared to other sunfish, and these bodies are blue-green in color with black dots and white bellies. They also have darker vertical bands across their bodies and a dark spot on their dorsal fin.
Green sunfish are not a desirable sport fish because they are relatively small, ranging from about 3 – 7 inches long and weighing less than a pound. These fish are very aggressive and will outcompete native fish species for food such as crayfish, fish eggs, insects, and smaller fishes.
