Pond Boss
Posted By: nehunter Black crappie still have eggs. - 06/25/21 01:00 AM
Last week my nephew caught 20 crappie, no big ones just 7 to 9 inches. He wanted to eat them really bad so I cleaned them for him. They still had eggs in almost all of them. The surface water has been in the 80's now for some time. What's up with the fish, did they miss the spawning time and are just going to absorb them? The water was really muddy this spring, would that had made them hold their eggs?
Posted By: jpsdad Re: Black crappie still have eggs. - 06/25/21 01:23 AM
I know LMB don't just spawn in the spring. Particularly in their second growing season when they weren't quite developed enough to spawn in spring they may latter mature and attempt to spawn when the water temps are warmer. I don't recall what water temp limitations are for LMB.

One of my 3 brothers loves to fish ... even more than me. He takes crappie fishing to a whole new level with Live-Scan (google it if not familiar) and such. He claims there is a fall crappie spawn and I've also heard the same of RES though I have never witnessed either personally. I am curious, were the eggs well developed and did they spill with pressure on the abdomen? If they were they could possibly spawn but if the eggs were very firm and small ... perhaps they are not fully developed where those females developed late and will reabsorb their eggs.
Posted By: nehunter Re: Black crappie still have eggs. - 06/25/21 11:48 AM
The eggs were smaller and clumped titer together, no way were they ready to spawn anytime soon. We had a very cold spring water temps were in high 60* till May.
Posted By: Dave Davidson1 Re: Black crappie still have eggs. - 06/25/21 01:58 PM
Lots of times their body just absorbs the eggs. Interesting to filet them at that time
Posted By: DonoBBD Re: Black crappie still have eggs. - 06/28/21 06:50 PM
I have seen this in our yellow perch as well even with large 12". I wonder if they were actually born in the fall and then will continue to spawn in the fall.
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