Nowadays crappie is really popular. Beginners and pro fishermen just love to catch them. We are talking about a freshwater fish that is scientifically known as Pomoxis. Talking about Pomoxis species you should know that we have two: annularis (white crappie) and Nigromaculatus (black crappie). Crappie is a term used to describe both species. Contrary to what some people believe, both the white and the black crappie have the same popularity as great game fish.
Crappie mostly feeds on smaller fish species. This is true if the crappie is an adult. What stands out as highly interesting is that you will find them eating younger specimens of predators. Examples can be given in northern spikes and walleyes. When they can not feed on smaller fish they can easily change their diets to crustaceans, insects and zooplankton.
Crappies fish are interesting as they are mainly active from dusk till dawn and not during days. The reason for this is that the night is the feeding time of the fish and that is when you will see it moving around and coming out of hiding. You can easily catch most crappies during the night and enjoy the very popular taste they have. All gets even better if we think about the diversity that we see in its diet as this immediately mean you can easily catch them with various methods. Even when winter comes you can apply similar crappie fishing techniques as the fish is to be active then too.
White crappie is definitely similar to black crappie. The only real difference that can be spotted easily is that the black crappie is a little darker and has a pattern of black spots in its body. In order to properly identify the crappie take a look at dorsal fins. The black one has 7 or 8 spines. Also, white crappies are usually located in waters that are not as clear as that preferred by black crappies. Adults black crappie eat a lot more fish than white crappies.
Crappie angling is highly popular these days in North America. In most situations people use spire rigging in order to catch them with many baits and different lines. Most fishermen will use crank baits, live minnows and lead jig heads. In order to get crappies fish to come towards the fisherman’s boat sometimes you can use live bait that is dumped in the water. No matter the method chosen, the crappie is highly popular and once you go out and catch it you can clearly understand why.
