Got a question for the folk that raise BCP.... removing 8” crappie this morning I found that the females had egg sacks that were immature..... the males were no longer colored up as they were weeks ago. Anyone know why this is? They look healthy and not stunted

Screwy weather patterns this year maybe? I saw a lot of cold nights this years spring. And my crappie fishing neighbor at Caddo said his crappie spawn fishing was messed up this spring with the weather being the cause "he thought".

That's interesting Pat. I wonder if that has been going on for a while and is why you haven't noticed any recruitment in your pond.

Maybe Bill
But the bass seem to spawn every year. If crappie move out into open water as soon as they hatch how can they be blamed for eating the LMB larvae?
Wish someone that studies them would chime in

Most crappie stocks in southern US should be done or close done spawning. This especially true in smaller ponds that warmed up quickly. That said, breeding season for species I watch does appear compressed because temperatures quickly moved up to and then above optimum for breeding.


My crappie spawn almost every year, even in ponds where recruitment occurs only once every few years. Recruitment failure / success appears related to something after fry move away from nesting habitat.

Would it be that the younger crappie don’t know yet when to spawn. The males are no
Longer colored up . Crappie were stocked spring of 2014 and appear to have spawned that same spring and the crappie that we are catching are the only spawn that made it. Have not seen any one year old crappie ( 5”) at all since the first spawn
Any enlightenment is appreciated

Spawning for crappie is instinctive so no prior experience or teaching needed.

Jim
How can you tell if the crappie pull off a spawn in a 5 ac pond?

By pulling off a spawn I assume you mean evidence after spawning season. When recruitment strong you can sometimes see rather large school of crappie less than an inch long in open water near surface. With more typical situations you can find smaller groups concentrated in groups in shade of dock or near brush with lots of sticks. If neither structure present, then float something casting a shadow at least 3 feet in diameter in water 4 feet or more deep and check there in the morning.

I snorkel my ponds quite a bit but have trouble detecting crappie fry when visibility less than 2 feet. Nesting males are usually easy to see if water clear and water surface calm.

Have seen schools of LMB fry in shallow water near plants and near surface, but not any other fry. I have about an acre of flooded timber that is thick and starting to fall into water. The dock is in about 7-8’ of water and floating. Brush is in 7’ water in front of pier.should I have brush in say 3-4’ water for them under and around pier?

The young schooled up crappie will be less tied to shoreline and certainly less mobile than Largemouth Bass when former have cover and good plankton bloom. If no location to anchor them, the crappie will be more mobile than the bass still under supervision.

Have you ever seen any BCP recruits?

None yet Bill. That’s why it’s hard to fathom that they will overpopulate . 4 years and one spawn....... hmmmm