Black and White Crappie hybrid..

[FalconSmitty]

Two types of crappie live in Alabama, black crappie and white crappie, with hybrids of the two occuring naturally some lakes, such as Weiss Lake.
http://www.outdooralabama.com/fishin.../fish/crappie/

Just wondering if I'm catching hybrids now and then. I know I see crappie that look different on here. Arkansas crappie look different than the crappie I catch, much bigger. Better defined specks. Anyone have some info on this?

[ReelFun]

Two types of crappie live in Alabama, black crappie and white crappie, with hybrids of the two occuring naturally some lakes, such as Weiss Lake.
http://www.outdooralabama.com/fishin.../fish/crappie/

Just wondering if I'm catching hybrids now and then. I know I see crappie that look different on here. Arkansas crappie look different than the crappie I catch, much bigger. Better defined specks. Anyone have some info on this?

I have read several studies on this and they all say much of the same thing. Cross breading studies and trials between black and white crappie have resulted in very little success. I've read several reports of trials at lakes and hatcheries where there has been only an average of 3% success rate and 98% of those successfully crossed have dominant black tendencies including the 7-8 spines. Although 8 is rare. Crossing occurs naturally in some lakes and the result is the same black tendencies. So you can't tell by looking. I will say I was born and raised in Michigan and the crappie are a much differant color than here in VA. What I've noticed around where I live now is Crappie in really stained water are darker and in clear are lighter. So I believe diet, water, region, and many other factors contribute to how a fish look.