State Record ‘Slab’

By Dan Armitage

A new Ohio state record category for hybrid crappie (White Crappie X Black Crappie) has been approved by the Outdoor Writers of Ohio (OWO) with consultation from the Ohio Division of Wildlife.  Biologists with the wildlife agency noted that hybrid crappies are not unusual in waters having populations of both species.  Fisheries biologists Kipp Brown and Mike Porto from Wildlife District 5 confirmed the identification of a hybrid crappie submitted to OWO as a potential state record.

The new state record hybrid crappie, weighing 4.27 pounds, and measuring 18.3 inches long with a girth of 16 inches, was caught by Jesse Miller of Middletown. Miller caught his hybrid crappie April 1, 2026, while fishing near the Middletown Dam on the Great Miami River, using a spinning rod spooled with six-pound-test monofilament line and offering a minnow below a bobber.  What’s more, the big crappie marks the first entry into Ohio’s new state record fish category for hybrids. … Continue reading