EQUIPMENT AND TECHNIQUE

The black crappie ranks high in popularity as game fish and pan fish. It is the major portion of the catch in some waters. Most are usually taken on live bait or small jigs, but when very big in size, they can bite on almost anything. In fact, they take all kinds of bait in all kinds of weather at all times of the day, all year round. This makes black crappies extremely popular with youngsters and novice anglers. However, this fish bites best in early spring, June, and late fall. No special tackle is needed since everyone has a lure or two in the tackle box that will entice a crappie.

Their eating qualities rank high, especially when pan fried. Because of their small size, several fish are needed to make a meal, but it isn't difficult to catch more after the first has been landed.

Reading the Water

Since these fish school, the ideal situation is to find them in quantity. Expert anglers look for the telltale signs of fish feeding in the calm, flat water of shallow bays -- the small rings these fish leave behind while picking up food on or near the top. Feeding may continue for as little as a few minutes to as long as two or three hours. Early morning or later in the evening is the best time to find the signs of crappie feeding as waters are usually calm at these times. Their usual pattern takes them into weeds early in the morning, out to deeper water midday, and back to the weedlines late in the day.

If you don't see the signs of feeding, look for weedbeds. Ideal conditions would be in six to 12 feet of water having heavy weed cover with small open pockets, allowing anglers to drop a lure into the holes. If there are no openings, fish the edge or along the top of weed cover. Crappies also use submerged wood and small shoals as habitat, but the crappie has a strange relationship to structure and cover (weedlines, humps, submerged logs, etc.). At times these fish suspend near it rather than associating more closely. In certain lakes, crappies migrate between deep water and weedbeds or brush piles. During this migration, crappies often suspend close to the wood or weeds before dispersing along or into them.

If working shorelines, try angling off points of land. Keep an eye on the water for food lines; i.e., lines caused by wind blowing edibles along its course. Beaver houses and deadfalls will also have a few fish hanging around in search of food. Work the edge of heavy cover. Once fish are found, stay close until action dies. Fish will feed from top to bottom which means at one moment they can be just under the surface, while a second later, hugging the bottom.

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