JayMan said:
 Quote:
Here is the discussion part of the thesis. From my observations of LMB, it is hard to believe that anything smaller can overpopulate in a pond with a "healthy" (healthy does not mean trophy in this case) LMB population. Yet crappie have this reputation. Why do calicos succeed where SMB,BG,RE,BullHead, GS, and other species can not? Is it fecundity, or spawn timing? Perhaps it is their behavior. Crappie will seek out deeper water in the summer and are fairly active all year. This behavior differs somewhat from that of LMB. Or maybe it is just too difficult for the average pond owner to manage this many variables?
I think a lot of it is that early spawning. On the years when that erratic early Crappie spawn succeeds big time, there are hordes of small Crappie with mouths big enough to eat every kind of fry and fingerling that follow them, including the LMB. Think of the consequences when this manages to occur several years in a row.

Perhaps this is why good Crappie ponds occur occasionally. Luck of the draw, with the odds stacked right for that pond. Local conditions and weather cause the Crappie spawn to succeed just often enough that neither the Crappie nor the LMB are overwhelmed. I remember reading a report on a large lake known for good Crappies which seemed to have a good year class of them about 1 year in 3. I've no idea if this would be an optimum Crappie spawn success rate, especially in ponds.

"Live like you'll die tomorrow, but manage your grass like you'll live forever."
-S. M. Stirling
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