are they friends or enemies?

[fryguy]

here is a long standing question adn i have asked many people with completly opposite answers;also, i work closely with the conservation department and have received different responses from their fisheries people.
will bass run crappie off structure or (unlikely) vice versa. many times i go to catch crappie i will catch all bass. or sometimes i will catch mainly crappie and 1 bass. it is never a nearly even amount, although at certain times of the year they should be in the same place and if i am tossing a roadrunner both species will munch it up. take a dock with structure around it, usually you will mainly catch crappie, but then you haev those days where you only catch bass while you are jigging right there. did the bass chase off the crappie for a short while? wrap your head around it because it is not like only one species will stop biting for a day, usually the whole bite slows down. what do you folks think?

[Slip Float]

I see what you are saying, now look at another senario. When I am catching big crappie on Truman there won't be but 1 big fish per tree. If you catch a smaller fish (9"or smaller) you may catch several. The spawn is a different story. I think the bass will chase off the crappie if the forage is there. If you are talking about big bass they could very well be feeding on the crappies.

[stumpbumpers]

I don't think either one runs the other off. I think who ever is there first stays. I don't think they are aggresive towards each other, as far as territory. If there is a lack of food, maybe. I think most places with crappie and bass, have a good food source. If the crappie are spawning they will keep the bass out or visa-versa. If this isn't true you could tear the bass up where ever the crappie bed, meaning the bass were feeding on the crappie. Bass, like crappie are either loners or schooling with there kind. Same with striper, cats, bluegill, shellcracker, etc... For some reason, I find that during the time that a species spawns other fish of any kind aren't in the area. For example when I'm bream fishing during the spawn and start catching grass perch I move. I do this because I know there aren't bream there!? It's the same with size, normally smaller fish school together and larger fish school together. I guess fish aren't much different than us, we tend to stick around with people similar to ourselves. We don't normally run people off if they are in "our" spot, we simply move somewhere else. Like for instance if someone is fishing your top, you don't run them off. You just hang out at another one . Likewise, as long as there is enough food to go around, we all get along pretty good too. I don't think I would read to much in to it. The answer as I see it is simple, but then again so am I. happy fish'n... bumpers...

[fryguy]

hmmm...it all seems to make sense, but do these fish have territories that they must re-dominate routinely? it seems like once the south end of my dock was in the control of crappies, it would stay that way for awhile. not saying i would always catch them there, just saying i wouldn't have these all bass days in that same spot. again, i'm not complaning about the bass, just trying to get inside their heads a little and figure out whose the top dog or "alpha fish"? (bass get much bigger, but crappie have them on sheer numbers!!)

[gonefishingee]

Grandpa always told me his conservation buddy clamed crappie are most comfortable in high co2 water and bass could care less. I wonder if this could have anything to do with it? I have also wondered why or if co2 changes what causes it to change.

The other thing I have wondered is when you catch crappie sometimes they will have a large shad in them how long does that keep them full? And does it keep them from biting for a few days.

[bwillaub]

i don't consider myself an expert on this or any other subject ..... but....here's my two cents worth. i have caught a couple of 2 1/2 pound bass with 6 to 8 inch crappies in their mouths already. if i'm a crappie and a bucketmouth shows...i'm outta there. iknow for a fact that a big northern or muskie will run the crappie off. i see no reason why a largemouth wouldn't do the same thing.

just my two cents.

bob

[fryguy]

as a botanist i can tell you that CO2 levels are affected by rainfall and the algae and phytoplankton population levels which change weekly and with the water temp. the rain oxygenates the water and balances out the CO2 levels and the "plants" in the water take in CO2 and release oxygen (plus a little CO2, but that's a hidden secret!)