Tips for catching black crappie?

[caseydrew]

What are some tips for catching black crappie instead of white crappie? Kentucky Lake (where I fish) used to be dominated by white crappie, but since the lake has started clearing up and more vegetation is growing the black crappie now dominate the lake. However, the majority of the crappie caught on KY lake are still white crappie despite the fact black crappie make up the majority of the population. This tells me the black crappie are a little different and that most anglers haven't figured them out where I fish. Any tips out there? I catch mostly white crappie as well and need to figure out where to be looking for the blacks over the whites.

[ceb]

From what I have experienced, it seems that the black crappie definately thrive better in clearer water lakes with lots of vegetation. The black crappie will tend to hold to cover all of the time...unlike the white crappie who tends to roam and suspend more. Look deep in brushpiles to catch black crappie. Once you find 'em, you will be in love with the black crappie. They get some shoulders on them. I caught a 3lb black crappie back in December, and he was only 16.5" long. A white crappie of the same length wouldn't have even come close to that mark.

Another tactic that was useful to me a few months ago in a lake here in AR...14' deep with hydrilla growing up to within 5' of the surface...spider riggin over the top of the grass. It seems that the black crappie were hiding in the grass and would ambush baitfish sitting on top of the grass. The only thing about this lake is that there is lots of standing timber. So, the black crappie still had wood cover to go along with the vegetation cover. It may be worth a try in your neck of the woods.

[J White]

No expert here, but I am thinking fishing shallower than you are used
to for a given season, and downsizing baits is a start - those boogers
seem to have a liking for "meat" too like pieces of red worm
on a jig.

[blairarnold]

The Ky. Game & Fish agency has been doing a study on black and white crappie seasonal movements including depths and there is a difference. I think you can access this on their website.

[CrappiePappy]

The Ky. Game & Fish agency has been doing a study on black and white crappie seasonal movements including depths and there is a difference. I think you can access this on their website.

Blair is correct - you're correct - and so are the other guys !!

Black Crappie spawn earlier, come shallower earlier, & stay shallower longer. Even on Watts Bar Lake, I found Black Crappie to be in on the banks from late March to late April ... and the White Crappie seemed to be most catchable from late April into mid May

Read thru these survey results :

http://fw.ky.gov/navigation.asp?cid=...vPath=C101C552

And read thru ALL the main links, and secondary links ... good info, maps, weather situations, water levels, etc --- it's all good info, and can be applied to most any similar creek spawning areas on Ky Lake. ...luck2ya ...cp

[skiptomylu]

I catch a lot of black crappie long line trolling with a 1/32oz. jig. Actually I usually end up with a somewhat mixed bag. Most of my trolling is around Hydrilla on Toledo Bend. Lots of times I will troll back and forth over the same line and catch the same type in the same spots. Like if I get white crappie right at the end of my line where I soon after turn around, then I will catch white crappie at that same place each time I get a bite at that spot. I may well catch black crappie over the entire length until I get back to that spot where I got the white.

[GRIZZ]

One specific difference I've always found between how blacks and whites hit jigs is that whites are more likely to hit cast jigs or I would presume trolled (horizontal presentation) and blacks tend to more often hit a stationary vertical jigging presentation. I think especially with the larger mature fish. I have also found blacks more than whites want a jig right in their strike zone which is why the vertical presentation works better for them. Now I'm fishing northern lakes, and it likely that it may be different in southern reservoirs.

[Darryl Morris]

Of course it's not a proven science, but the black crappie seem to move into the shallows faster than the majority of the white crappie. In conjunction with that, location on the lake could make a difference especially when it comes to water temp and clarity.

[caseydrew]

What I don't understand is that everyone says black crappie like the shallows more, but we don't catch the fish shallow like we used to. With the population of black crappie taking over you would think there would be more of a shallow bite than there is. 15 years ago we fished 2' to 3' deep during the spawn and today we catching them 6' to 10' during the spawn? If I could figure out how to concentrate on the black crappie people aren't catching it could get interesting.

[Baditude]

The majority of the crappie i catch are blacks...they do like vegetation , clear clean water and do hold pretty tight to cover...but it does depend on the water - i have caught several mixed bags using the same jigs and techniques in the same spot/structure in a very muddy river.