White Crappie fish, its habitats, characteristics, fishing methods.
White Crappie (Crappie belongs) is a fish species in the sunfish family. Its native range includes all the continental states. Its diet includes small fish, mollusks, insects, minnows and crustaceans, they also feed on gizzard and threadfin shad.
White Crappie at a glance
Scientific name
Crappie belongs
Family
sunfish
Also known as
Paper mouth, goggleye, bridge perch and speckled perch, is native throughout the eastern half of Canada and the United States, and has been widely introduced in the west as well
Native range
all the continental states
Diet
small fish, mollusks, insects, minnows and crustaceans, they also feed on gizzard and threadfin shad
Lifespan
10 years
Crappie belongs to the sunfish family, they are very sensitive to sunlight. They feed mostly at dawn, dusk
and at night all year round, but feed less often when water temps dips below 50°F when their metabolism is
slower. They eat small fish, mollusks, insects, minnows and crustaceans, they also feed on gizzard and
threadfin shad. Crappie are fish that love structures, so concentrate on cover such as brush piles,
stumps, fallen trees, rock piles, humps, or any other submerged cover. Crappie are pretty active all year
round, but spring and fall are the hottest times to catch them.
A combination of understanding the fish and the techniques used to catch them will help you to hook more
fish to the end of your line. Better knowing and understanding of the fish that you are trying to catch
will make you a more successful angler, whether you are fishing for trout on a river or surfing on the
beach or trolling on the open water.
The white crappie, Pomoxis annularis Rafinesque, also known as Paper mouth, goggleye, bridge perch
and speckled perch, is native throughout the eastern half of Canada and the United States, and has
been widely introduced in the west as well. Crappie is actually a member of the sunfish family and
can be found in all the continental states. They swim in large schools and are found throughout most
of the U.S. and into Canada. Crappies prefer fairly warm water and are normally found in nearly all
types of cover.
Description
The dorsal fin has 6 spines. The White Crappie is paler in color, with dark spots on the
silver sides usually arranged in regular vertical bars. The white crappie tends to be lighter in color and
often has distinct vertical bars of gray extending down its sides. It has 5-6 dorsal spines. They average
6 - 11 inches (15 - 27 cm) fully grown, however with enough food and cover they can reach lengths up to 17
in (42cm). In most waters, crappie with a weight from 1/2 to 2 pounds is considered good fish. They can
reach weights of up to 6 pounds, and can live up to 10 years.
Habitats
These species prefers slower-moving water, often turbid, whether a backwater of a small
creek or a large
lake. White crappies can flourish in warmer,
waters that have more silt than
Black Crappies would like. They
prefer areas with clear to turbid water and heavy structure. When living in river they prefer areas with
slow or no current such as sloughs, backwaters, and oxbows. When spawning, the white crappie deposits its
eggs on plant surfaces or in poorly-defined nests in shallow water. This very prolific fish may
overpopulate small bodies of water less than 100 acres in area. Crappies are versatile feeders, eating
most types of insects, worms, and small crayfish and minnows.
Spawning
Crappie spawns when the water temperature reaches about 52-60°F (11-16°C). Just before
spawning (when the water hits about 48-51°F), they move into shallower water and feed aggressively. This
is known as the pre-spawn period. Most crappie move into shoreline cover such as fallen trees and shallow
coves during this time. The females will then lay their eggs and move to slightly deeper water while the
males stay in the shallows and guard the nest. If you catch several smaller fish in shallow water, try
moving to the nearest drop-off and you may find the larger females feeding. These pre-spawn and spawn
periods of spring often offer the best fishing of the year. The cooling water of the fall also offers good
crappie fishing. When the warm summer waters begin to cool down, the fish begin feeding aggressively in
order to fatten up for the winter.
Fishing Methods.
Fishing method vary, but the most popular is Spider Rigging, a method using many long
fishing rods pointing away from the angler at various angles like spiders legs. Using this method you can
choose from many different types of bait, to find out one that is preferred for this water. Some of the
most popular are live minnows, plastic jigs with lead jig heads or crank-baits. Crappie are also regularly
targeted and caught during the spawning period using fly fishing, and can be taken from frozen ponds and
lakes in winter by ice fishing method.
Crappie is one of the most fun fish to catch and certainly one of the best tasting fish.
They are fairly active year round, but fall and spring offer the hottest fishing. The warming spring water
temperature triggers a feed-a-thon amongst fish.
Crappies are school fish and can be caught by still-fishing, casting, trolling or drifting.
Spring is the best time to catch crappie as they are involved in their spawning runs. They love cover, so
locate brush, stumps or artificial cover at appropriate depths and you are likely to find crappie. At dawn
you may find them close to the surface. As the sun hits the water they drop to 5 or 10 feet deep depending
on water clarity. As the sun gets higher in the sky they may retreat to deeper water, 25 feet or more. As
the sun begins to set they will move back up to the shallows and finish the day at the surface as dusk
turns to darkness. Typically they return to deeper water for the night and may occasionally do some
feeding during the dark hours. Baits which imitate minnows, insects, worms or small crustaceans will
attract crappie. The more aggressive the crappies are, the faster you can move the bait to cover more
water.
Crappie are fish that love structure, so key in on areas with prominent cover. Rock piles,
shallow coves, stumps, points, fallen trees, and submerged brush are all favorites. Many anglers sink
Christmas trees, old bushes, tires, and even wooden palettes to create homes for big fish. Look for
locations where you will find lots of cover like overhanging rocks, natural coverlets, sunken logs with
crevices and spaces hidden from prying predatory eyes. Vertical jigging is a good method to fish submerged
cover. A 1/32 or 1/16 oz. jig dropped into brush and twitched will produce many fish if the conditions are
right. Try swimming a small spinner through stump fields or along fallen trees to locate the slabs. When
you identify the depth at which most of the fish are holding, try suspending a jig or minnow at that depth
under a small bobber. This is an effective way to keep your bait in the desired depth for a much longer
period of time.
