I have a question for people who want black crappie in their pond. Is it really that hard to control the population and keep them from stunting ? I have a 3.5 acre pond (still filling) with a forage base well established, adult bass have been introduced to supply the first spawn this Spring. I love catching and eating crappie, and it�s hard for me to imagine them getting �out of control� because I love to fish. My water is always muddy after a big rain, but clears in about 3 weeks. There is a lot of structure away from the main 2 acre bowl shaped section of my pond (20 ft.) for the crappie to spawn and hide.
I plan on adding about 20 stripers to patrol the �open water�, along with 100 channel cats, threadfins, & tilapia in May. I want a diversified pond and would like to hear from others how they manage their crappie population. I know the main reason for overpopulating is stained water, and I fall into that category in general. Can anyone give a rough guess as to �how many� crappie need to be removed per acre when stunting at 5-7� occurs ?
