Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Another crappie question

Just received my Pond Boss magazine and would first like to tell Otto I like his "pond construction" articles. Secondly, I read yet another question about having crappie. That queation shows up all the time and the answer is always somewhat the same. What the answre is missing is WHY do they work okay in large lakes over 20 acres? What is differen't in 20 or 30 or more acres as opposed to 2 0r 3? I don't see how anyone can keep bass from overcrowding in a 40 acre lake because anything over 5 would start getting hard to do enough harvesting. Please someone shed some light on my sad sheltered little soul.

I guess I would like know what every one's opinion is on the smallest lake or pond for crappie are? Every one seems to have different opion on "smallest" lake size for crappie. What is it...

Crappie do not multiply enormously every year. But you eventually hit a year when bang, lotsa crappie. Then your pond is over-run with 2 inch crappie. In a big lake, there are enough bass (hopefully) to make a few meals and deplete them. In a small pond, you are suddenly over run with crappie and even though your bass are fat and eating more every day, you still have more crappie than your pond can support.

Other reason, an acre of water can only support so much life. If you have crappie, and want big bass; the crappie take away a percentage of that figure. Big fish eat smaller fish. Intermediate crappie will eat all of the small fish, including your small bass. That leaves you without a size class of bass to replenish the big ones as they disappear.

Thanks Nick. I didn't know if noone knew or just didn't like me.

Brian, I think it is hard to say.

I have fished one 15 acre tank that has been good for one or 2 14 inch crappie a year for years. However, I don't think they have a bluegill base. It is also loaded with weeds. I think the bass must clobber just about all of the spawn every year.

I also have fished a 30 acre dammed up creek that has excellent bass fishing and zillions of runt crappie. I understand the catfishing is also excellent.

Some people say no smaller than 15 others larger I gusse it depends on other factors besides size. I had a biologist come out and look at a 8.5 acre lake of mine and he said that it could do alright with crappie, because of so many little Bass