by Mike Banovetz
The optimist fisherman!
A recent DNR study determined that only the walleye surpasses crappie as the state’s favorite fish to catch. This is due, in part, to crappie’s being great table fare and its prevalence in many Minnesota lakes.
Many anglers fish for crappie in the spring and early summer periods because they concentrate in shallow dark bottom bays 2’ to 8 feet deep prior to spawning. Water temperatures in the 50’sF is the pre-spawn period where crappie move closer to shallow nest sites. Black crappie spawn slightly earlier than white crappies.
As temperature ascends to the low 60’sF, males move in first to nest sites on hard bottom substrate in 3’ to 10 feet deep. In natural lakes good cover can be rhizome root systems of white lily or open spots in bulrushes, near downed trees or emerging vegetation. Males become more aggressive once nest building starts and the female just stops by for a few days to lay up to lay eggs and the moves out to deeper water. Males stay behind to protect the eggs and fry and is vulnerable to fishing because of their protective behavior.
Please practice catch-and-release where ever possible to ensure healthy fish populations, especially when big females have not deposited her eggs is caught. Handle crappie carefully to minimize stress and return near their nests. Remember to respect spawning fish and practice conservation to ensure sustainable fishing for future generations.
Crappies are structure oriented and highly mobile. They relate to brush piles, fallen trees, weed edges, and suspended timber. Summer crappies often suspend over deep water, following plankton and minnows. As crappies increase in size, they change their diet from eating mostly insects and crustaceans to eating mostly bait fish and matching lures that imitate a small fish can be good for catching a big crappie.
Live minnows are highly effective during the spawn that mimic baitfish that crappie feed on but also can appear as potential predator coming to eat the eggs on the nest.
When tossing plastic and hair jigs choose brightly colored chartreuse, pink, or white to entice aggressive protective crappies.
Small spinner baits with flash and vibration can trigger reaction strikes near nests.
Generally, crappies are visual feeders and selecting the right color is important.
• Bright Colors: Use bright colors like chartreuse, pink, or orange in murky water or low-light conditions to make your lure more visible.
• Natural Colors: Choose natural shades like white, silver, or green in clear water to mimic the appearance of baitfish.
• Dual-Tone Lures: Many anglers prefer lures with two contrasting colors, as these create a more noticeable profile in the water.
Size of the hook on your lure or jig affects your hookup rate and overall presentation. Sizes 4 to 8 are ideal for crappie, as they are small enough to fit in most crappie mouths and prevent excessive damage to fish.
Later in the year, crappies tend to stay in deeper water except during dawn and dusk when they move toward shore to feed. They can be found along underwater points, humps, deep weed lines and other structure.
Crappies can be caught in a variety of techniques including fishing a minnow, small leech, or a small part of a crawler beneath a bobber, casting a small jig tipped with a soft plastic body, or casting beetle-spin lure or small hard plastic lures. As crappies increase in size, they change their diet from eating mostly insects and crustaceans to eating mostly bait fish, so matching lures that imitate a small fish can be good for catching a big crappie.
Spinners, jigs, soft plastics, and live bait each offer unique advantages depending on the conditions.
Small jigs are the most common lure for catching crappie. A 1/8-ounce, 1/16-ounce or 1/32-ounce jig will gradually fall toward the bottom of the lake and then all you need to do is slowly reel it in, making small jigging motions with your rod.
A beetle-spin and spinnerbait lures are also effective at catching crappie. These lures give off a lot of flash and vibration and work best in shallow or fairly shallow water.
Small hard plastic lures are also a good option as they tend to be the shape, color and size of common prey. Many anglers like to troll hard plastic baits slowly around weed lines, weed edges and other structure in search of schools of crappie. Once you have found a pod of fish, anchor and cast the same lure or jig or minnow-and-bobber rig.
Those fishing with a bobber will want to use hooks in the No. 6 to No. 10 range. Hooks with long shanks are best because they are easier to unhook from a fish’s mouth though crappies, because of their very soft mouths, are usually very easy to unhook.
Pro Tip: In summer a slip bobber allows your bait to fall to any preselected depth while also allowing you to cast with ease. A slip bobber is a good thing to have because sometimes a minnow on a plain hook in 15 feet of water is just the ticket.
Pro Tip: When in doubt tie on a jig with a feathered tail and furry body. Such jigs have been around for years and still work well.
Minnesota is home to two types of crappies: the black crappie and the white crappie. Black crappies have irregular dark speckles on their sides and white crappie markings consist of regularly arranged vertical bars. When in doubt count the number of spines on the dorsal fin that stretches across the top of the fish. Black crappies have seven or eight spines while white crappies have five or six.
Pro Tip: Crappies have paper-thin mouths so don’t set the hook hard. Simple sweep motion of the rod will set the hook.
Pro Tip: Slow presentation is key in cold water.
Pro Tip: Match the jig size to the minnow you are tipping.
Pro Tip: Suspended crappies feed up, so present baits above them.
Crappie like to hover below their prey, fining in place and examining slow swimming invertebrates such as damselfly, dragonfly, and mayfly nymphs, as well as small leeches. Because of this, a float rig remains a primo bait delivery tool. Slip boobers are not just for kids. Adding casting weight with a slip bobber allows casting tiny 1/32-to-1/16-ounce jigs further and can be used to cover more water.
For casting without a float, a black 1/16-ounce marabou jig is a great offering all year. Plain jigs dressed with 1.5 inch to 2.0-inch mini tubes, paddle tails, and creature baits are good choices. When fishing pressured crappies, go to smaller and more natural-colored offerings with black and brown hues.
I like to use a 7’6” light rated rod more than ultralight rods for casting slip bobbers. This is more of lobbing side arm action than overhead casting. I pair the rod with a size 20 or 10 reel and 6# mono. I use a 7’0” ultralight rod with a reel spooled with 4# mono to cast tiny 1/32 to 1/6 once jigs. If you venture into braids, the diameters are even smaller and can cast further.
I hope this helps put more crappies in the boat!
Enjoy time on the water and take a kid fishing!
