Crappie Spawn

[stumpy041486]

Hey

At what temp to crappie start to move up shallow to spawn? Is it usually before, after, or during bass spawn?

Thanks

[FAADAN]

I think it's around 62 to 65 and a little before Bass

[TDHcrappiemaster]

Yep its around the 60 deg mark when they start to spawn. But I have noticed over the years that when we finally loose our ice and the sun is shining bright for a few days in a row then the crappie will move into 5' or less of water feeding like crazy in the warmer water. This tends to happen here in Indiana early to mid March.

[Lowellhturner]

Agreed. Excellent article of North American Fishing Club- "Crappies By Degrees"; basically where crappies will be and their general activities in 5 degree incerments, from 40F to 85+F and back again, and suggested tactics and rigs. Very informative.

[FAADAN]

Agreed. Excellent article of North American Fishing Club- "Crappies By Degrees"; basically where crappies will be and their general activities in 5 degree incerments, from 40F to 85+F and back again, and suggested tactics and rigs. Very informative.

http://www.crappie.com/crappie/archi...e-degrees.html

[Hillbilly910]

i'll find black males in shallow water(real shallow) when its mid to high 50's, whites here seem to drag their feet abit more, showing up mid 60's. (have caught white males on banks in 80 degree water as well)
Every year is different, was catching black males in a creek 4th of march last year.

The actual spawn i dont find as important as the transition into spawning mode, moving fish shallow.
Once water warms beyond 54-55 degrees, you wont find me in water deeper than a couple feet, excepting massive fronts(even then i seldom leave the shallows).

HB

[kyron4]

Yep its around the 60 deg mark when they start to spawn. But I have noticed over the years that when we finally loose our ice and the sun is shining bright for a few days in a row then the crappie will move into 5' or less of water feeding like crazy in the warmer water. This tends to happen here in Indiana early to mid March.

Very true, however in Indiana the weather in spring can be so up and down; with 3 or 4 days of warm then 3 or 4 days of cold, it can drive you batty trying to get on the bite. As it goes, " If you don't like the weather in Indiana, stick around a few days it will change "

[Crappie Reaper]

Most bigger Crappie are going to move in earlier than the rest. In some cases as early as a month before the bulk. I check my favorite spawning areas when the temp hits 50 and at times can find the Motherload.

[CrappiePappy]

Most bigger Crappie are going to move in earlier than the rest. In some cases as early as a month before the bulk. I check my favorite spawning areas when the temp hits 50 and at times can find the Motherload.

Reaper ... I was always under the impression that the larger Crappie did, in fact, come in to spawn earlier than the smaller & younger year classes. And I read an article that may put some light on the "why" of that. The article basically said that the larger fish spawned first, because of the fact that they had greater fat stores than did the smaller/younger ones. This allows them to survive changing conditions, while keeping up the maturation process of the eggs/milt. The smaller fish, having less stored fat, are more prone to utilizing that energy source to maintain their own survival ... and must wait (& feed) longer, in order to have time to obtain the necessary level of stored energy for the spawning process. This may also be a factor in why the smaller fish are seemingly more aggressive feeders.
The smaller fish coming in & bedding later than the larger fish, could also be explained by the idea that .... if the larger fish get the best bedding areas earlier, they would necessarily drive off any smaller ones as a survival tactic (since even the smaller Crappie would be seen as a possible threat to the eggs/fry).

... cp

[Crappie Reaper]

This time of year, I love checking out feeder creeks that feed a river.