Fishing and hunting report for Dec. 21

BULL SHOALS: 50s, clear, 5 1/2 feet low. Outlook: Big Bob’s Bait and Tackle reports: Crappies good on jigs (chrome is best color), minnows and a variety of small plastic baits over brush piles and in standing timber; bass fair to good on Alabama rigs and Rock Crawlers along main-lake bluffs and in major creeks, also smallmouth bass fair on grubs fished slowly and on spoons fished as deep as 40 feet. Below the dam: Cotter Trout Dock reports: Minimum flows; rainbow trout fairly good on PowerBait, shrimp, Little Cleos (gold) and hammered spoons (silver blue). Berry Bros. Guide Service reports: Significant wadable water; Buffalo Shoals is the hot spot; woolly buggers, Y2Ks, prince nymphs, pheasant tails, midges, San Juan worms and sowbugs.

TANEYCOMO: 54 degrees, fairly clear, morning and evening generation. Outlook: Lilleys’ Landing reports: Trout fair on pink Power Worms and Powerbait (orange/white); for fly fisherman, scuds, egg flies and San Juan worms, also midges fished under a bobber if there’s no flow. High winds have hindered access.

NORFORK: 55 degrees, clear, 2 feet low. Outlook: Bink’s Guide Service reports: Stripers good on Bink’s spoons or live bait casting or trolling 35 to 40 feet down in creeks; black bass good on Bink’s spoons or small jigs fished in creeks; crappies good on jigs or minnows 25 to 30 feet down over Corps brush piles.

LONGVIEW: 44 degrees, 30-inch clarity,  1/2 -foot low. Outlook: Longview Marina reports: All species slow. Marina will close Saturday and reopen Jan. 2.

POMME DE TERRE: 48 degrees, fairly clear,  1/2 -foot low. Outlook: Muskie Guide Service reports: Bass fair on jerk baits and Alabama rigs in the shallows; walleyes poor to fair on crankbaits; crappies fair on jigs or minnows 10 feet down over brush piles.

LAKE OF THE OZARKS: 45 degrees, clear, 4 feet low. Outlook: Gier’s Bass Pro reports: Crappies good (and good-sized) 15 feet down on minnows or jigs over brush piles and off condo docks; bass good on jigs, spinnerbaits or jerkbaits in 3 to 20 feet of water off chunk-rock points; all other species slow.

REED AREA: 36 degrees, clear,  1/2 -foot low. Outlook: Department of Conservation reports: Crappies good on tube jigs and minnows near brush piles and weed beds; all other species slow.

STOCKTON: 50 degrees, clear, 4 feet low. Outlook: Stockton Lake Guide Service reports: Crappies very good on jigs or minnows in 16 to 18 feet of water over brush piles; all other species slow.

JACOMO: Low 40s, slightly stained, normal. Outlook: Forty Woods Bait and Tackle reports: Crappies good to very good on small minnows or jigs off pay docks and around the marina; walleyes fair on minnows and deep diving crankbaits around the marina; all other species slow.

BLUE SPRINGS: Low to mid-40s, stained, normal. Outlook: Forty Woods Bait and Tackle reports: Crappies good early on small minnows, small jigs or small jigging spoons off marina docks; all other species slow.

TRUMAN: 46 degrees, clearing, 1 foot low. Outlook: Guide Bob Bates reports: Crappies excellent (and good-sized) on Swarm jigs off the bluffs in 20 to 25 feet of water (shad are gathering at those locations, and fish are gorging themselves); all other species slow.

SMITHVILLE: 38 degrees, clear,  1/2 -foot low. Outlook: Camp Branch Marina reports: All species slow.

COFFEY COUNTY: 69 degrees at hot-water outlet, clear, 4 feet low. Outlook: Coffey County reports: White bass and largemouth bass very good, blue catfish, smallmouth bass and crappies fair to good.

MELVERN: 44 degrees, clear,  1/2 -foot low. Outlook: Melvern Lake Marina reports: Crappies fair on minnows or jigs (red and dark colors are best) off the docks; white bass poor to fair in areas near flooded timber at the west end; smallmouth bass fair on spoons and shallow-running crankbaits along shorelines and riprap; channel catfish fair on cut bait in deep water; all other species slow.

CLINTON: 40s, clearing, 1 foot high. Outlook: Don and Tom’s Bait and Tackle reports: Crappies good on jigs (black/silver, pink/chartreuse, black/chartreuse and orange/chartreuse are best colors) or minnows over brush piles and near breaks; all other species slow.

WILSON: 40s, clear,  1/2 -foot high. Outlook: Guide Dale Hines reports: Stripers good on slab spoons near drop-offs and humps; all other species slow.

PERRY: 41 degrees, clearing, 2 feet high. Outlook: Don and Tom’s Bait and Tackle reports: Blue catfish fair on fresh shad drifting over flats near Ozawkie; crappies excellent (and good-sized) on jigs (black/silver, pink/chartreuse, black/chartreuse and orange/chartreuse are best colors) or minnows off docks and lakewide 10 to 15 feet down over brush piles; all other species slow.

MILFORD: 41 degrees, clear, 2 feet high. Outlook: Wildlife, Parks and Tourism reports: Catfish fair to good (blues on cut bait 30 to 45 feet down near channel ledges; channels on nightcrawlers or cut bait 20 feet down); crappies fair to good on jigs or minnows 10 to 25 feet down off points or over ledges or brush; walleyes fair on spoons, nightcrawlers or crankbaits 25 to 35 feet down on flats and off points; white bass and wipers fair on jigs or spoons off windy points or over channel ledges; smallmouth bass fair on jigs off gravel banks and points; largemouth bass fair on jerkbaits or jigs off secondary-creek points and ledges.

HILLSDALE: 40 degrees, fairly clear,  1/2 -foot high. Outlook: Jayhawk Marina reports: Crappies poor to fair on jigs and minnows around the docks; channel catfish good on nightcrawlers or dip baits on bottom of river channels; walleyes good on nightcrawlers off points and near shad schools; all other species slow.

LA CYGNE: 60 degrees at the hot-water outlet, clear, normal. Outlook: Linn County Park reports: Crappies good on minnows or jigs; largemouth bass very good (a 7.3-pounder and a 6.8-pounder were caught over the weekend); white bass fair.

GLEN ELDER: 44 degrees, clear, normal. Outlook: Wayne’s Sporting Goods reports: Trout good on nightcrawlers or PowerBait; all other species slow.

TUTTLE CREEK: 42 degrees, stained, 2 feet low. Outlook: Wildlife, Parks and Tourism reports: Crappies fair on jigs or minnows 12 to 15 feet down off points and over brush; catfish poor to fair in upper end; trout good on PowerBait, corn or minnows; all other species slow.

BOB BROWN: 58,100 ducks, mostly mallards. Last week, 54 hunters averaged 1.5 ducks apiece.

NODAWAY VALLEY: 27,500 ducks, mostly mallards. Last week, 42 hunters averaged 1.2 ducks apiece.

LOESS BLUFFS: 75,401 ducks, mostly mallards; 3,118 geese, mostly Canada geese.

MONTROSE: 10,301 ducks, mostly mallards; 32,720 geese, mostly snow geese. Last week, 30 hunters averaged 0.5 ducks apiece.

FOUR RIVERS: 50,965 ducks, mostly mallards. Last week, 47 hunters averaged 1.3 ducks apiece.

SCHELL-OSAGE: 25,150 ducks, mostly mallards; 109 Canada geese. Last week, 88 hunters averaged 0.8 ducks apiece.

GRAND PASS: 175,000 ducks, mostly mallards; 350 geese, mostly Canada geese. Last week, 124 hunters averaged 2.4 ducks apiece.

FOUNTAIN GROVE: 162,000 ducks, mostly mallards; 8,100 geese, mostly snow geese. Last week, 104 hunters averaged 1.6 ducks apiece.

SWAN LAKE: Most recent report: 23,795 ducks, mostly mallards; 28,662 geese, mostly snow geese. To access the online draw, go to https://swanlake.recaccess.com/

CHEYENNE BOTTOMS: 15,000 to 25,000 ducks, mostly mallards; 50,000 to 100,000 geese, mostly snow geese. Since season reopened Saturday, hunters averaged 2.6 ducks apiece; goose hunters averaged less than 1 bird apiece.

MARAIS DES CYGNES: 30,000 ducks. Dec. 12 to Dec. 18, 283 hunters averaged 0.8 ducks apiece.

NEOSHO: 35,000 ducks, mostly mallards; 750 Canada geese and white-fronted geese.

PERRY: 7,500 ducks, mostly mallards.

TUTTLE CREEK: 100 ducks; 100 Canada geese.

MILFORD: 1,000 ducks; 300 geese.

QUIVIRA: 27,261 ducks, mostly mallards; 57,517 geese, mostly Ross’ and snow geese; 565 sandhill cranes.

MELVERN: 280 mallards.

This story was originally published December 20, 2017 at 6:30 PM with the headline "Fishing and hunting report for Dec. 21."