Features: White
Crappie are often confused
with Black Crappie. White
crappie have silvery bodies
with blackish green mottling
forming narrow vertical bars
on the sides. The forehead
is more dished than in the
black crappie. The dorsal
fin has five or six spines
and its length is less than
the distance between the dorsal
fin and eye.
Habitat: White
crappie
do
best
in
larger
lakes
and
reservoirs
and
are
more
tolerant
of
turbidity
and
less
dependent
on
aquatic
vegetation
than
black
crappie.
They
congregate
around
pilings,
sunken
logs,
underwater
brush,
weed
beds
and
rocks.
White
crappie begin life feeding
primarily on zooplankton.
As they grow they begin taking
increasingly larger percentages
of insects, other larger invertebrates
and small fish.
Technique: Crappie
fishing is best during the
cool weather of early spring
when they inhabit the shallow
ends of coves, and also in
the fall. At these times,
crappie congregate in loose
schools around sunken logs
or brushy cover or just beyond
the weeds in water 6 to 15
feet deep. As with sunfish,
the hardest part of catching
crappie is finding the schools.
Best fishing is during the
early morning or in the evening
when they often feed on the
surface. During the winter
crappies often move to deeper
water along vertical structure
such as pilings or dams. Begin
by fishing near likely looking
cover or structure at different
depths until you find a school. A
bobber and jig rig is the
favored setup (see diagram).
Crickets, grasshoppers, and
worms rigged the same way
on a size 10 or 12 bait hook
are also effective. Experienced
anglers often fish jigs without
a bobber, but a bobber rig
will prevent many hang-ups.
For jigs, the “smaller-the-better” seems
to be the rule, with some
experienced anglers using
jigs as small as 1/80th ounce.
Jigs come in many colors,
but red and white, green and
white, and chartreuse are
popular. Light monofilament
line of 4 to 6 pound test
is necessary to achieve a
lifelike action in these lures.
Jig hooks may also be tipped
with a crappie “nibble” to
give them scent.
