Old School Crappie Fishing Family Secrets
If you are a crappie fisherman you probably are always looking for that edge on how to catch crappie. I could give you some elaborate spiel like, “ If you use these guidelines you are guaranteed to catch crappie” but lets face it anyone who is an avid fisherman looks at statements like that as a “lot of bull” What I would like to do though is share some common guidelines I use to develop your own list of tips to catch crappie. You see on any given day you can get skunked, even the pros do once in awhile. The trick is to refine your skills to understand what crappie live bait or tackle for crappie fishing to use in different seasons and different fishing situations. To this you need to develop your own personal list of crappie fishing guidelines.
Guideline #1 Always use your local bait shop and state or federal department of natural resources to get local fishing information. Here are some good questions to ask; “What crappie minnow rigs people are using” , “ What type of crappie live bait anglers are using”, “What types of crappie fishing jigs and what sizes are fisherman using”, “What is the average size of the crappies fisherman are catching” “Where are the best spots to catch crappie”. The folks at the bait stores talk to fisherman everyday and the department of natural sources do annual netting of crappie to determine the average. size and numbers of these fish, they are a valuable resource when developing your list. You want to be as thorough as you can be with these folks because based on the information you obtain from these folks you are going to make your best crappie bait selection. For example if after interviewing your local bait shop and the department of natural resources you find out the average catch size anglers are catching is around 1/2lb to 1lb. Live bait fisherman are having the best luck using fathead minnows, and fisherman using jigs are catching crappie on small 1/64oz to 1/32oz jigs painted florescent green. The fish are being caught in the shallow areas around sunken trees. Ok al you need to do now is make you crappie rigging to march your information. Those 10 or 15-minute interviews can make the difference of catching fish or coming home empty handed. After you have set up your crappie crappies fishing rigging and caught a few fish, clean a few and see what is inside their stomachs this is a excellent way to find out exactly what crappie are eating on any given day!
Guideline #2 Spring is the most active time of year for the crappie species. Get your crappie minnow rigs and your arsenal of jigs for crappie ready because the crappie fish will be active! Crappie will start spawning when the water temperature reaches about 56degrees Fahrenheit. The crappies will be eating large adult crappie minnows right before the spawn because their natural forage fish do not spawn until later in the spring and summer when the water temperature rises to above 70degrees Fahrenheit. So if your wondering what crappie baits to choose keep in mind that the early spring crappie and the fish on the spawning nests will be eating larger forage fish. You can verify this information but cutting open the stomachs of a few fish and example the contents. Another important tip to catch crappie is the fact that nesting crappie hate any fish invading their nesting areas. You can use this to your advantage because these fish will “strike out at any thing that invades there nesting area.
Guideline #3 In the summer months you will be able to use crappie fishing rigs ranging in size from 1/64oz to 1/4oz depending on the size of fish you plan to target. The majority of the crappie fish’s diet will consist of adult & and recently hatched forage fish fry. You can adjust your crappie minnow rigs based on the size of fish you plan to target. The smaller fish will be feeding on the fry so choose a crappie bait to match the size of the fry. A choice of about 1/64oz would be good here. If you are going after slabs then adjust your crappie rigging accordingly. A bait for crappie selection of 1/8oz to 1/4oz would be a great choice here. As in the other guidelines you can verify your sizes by checking the content of the stomachs of the fish you catch.
Guideline #4 There are special situations where you need to do some additional preparation to learn how to catch crappie. One of the most common special situations you will come across depending on where you are fishing is water clarity. This will be the only special situation we will touch on today. When you are fishing muddy or stained water waters the crappie will have a hard time seeing your crappie baits, and rigging for crappies so you need to hone in on their keen senses here. On your crappie live bait rigs you will need to add some flashy spinner blades and some rattles. The crappie can hear the rattles and see the blade flash as they approach your crappie bait enticing them to strike. In clear water you will need a very small diameter fishing line like fire line, that is near invisible in the water. Your crappie rigging will need to be the smallest you can find that will still get your crappie baits to where the fish are. The crappie’s sight is outstanding in clear water so you need to imitate the forage fish bait well.
Mark Fleagle is an Expert Author At Ezinearticles.com. and has over 30 years of fishing experience who has written 100's of useful fishing articles. Would you like to max out your catch on your next fishing trip? Blow your fishing buddies out of the water and get your bragging rights today! Also don't forget to get your free copy of "78 Fishing Discoveries Unleashed" http://www.oldfishinghole.com
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