Crappie Limit

[Old plug]

there are still a lot of 12" crappie in LOZ they can be cuaght in good numbers at the right time amd place. 

[MOPanfisher]

Crappie fishing on all lakes seems to be year class dependent.  Some years 10 inch plus fish are easier to come by than short fish, other years the opposite, sometimes it changes in the same year depending on conditions.  this fall fishing LOZ we couldn't buy a keeper crappie, others in the same time period were talking about catching good ones.  Thats how it goes.  Some days are short days some are keeper days.  Thats why they call it fishing.

[fishinwrench]

I don't ever remember a day that 12" was considered 'just good keeping size'.

A 12" crappie is a genuine Slab and has been as long as I can remember.  After 11" though they really just get big heads and tails.  Not much more meat on a 12+.

[Chief Grey Bear]

All I know is when I fished with my dad and all the others back in the 70's and early 80's on Grand, Stockton and Table Rock, 30 fish limits of 1-2 pound fish was a daily event. 

But you are right an 11" inch as just as much meat. 

[96 CHAMP]

As many people that fish for crappie down at the lake I can understand why the abundance of slabs can change from year to year, along with spawning problems, wether Ameren afflicts that problem or not, I'm not sure. And I'm sure that many people are way over there possession limits also, It wouldn't matter if they changed the limit, a 9" crappie is just a dink anyway, you put some time and effort into it and you'll find some nice keepers, JMO

[Old plug]

Armens has messed up the white bass. Crappie and black can fool everyone with there spawning habits. Often it is under docks, deeper and later. People come down in April and fish the brush. They often catch small mails and females. That does not mean the big ones are not there. Those big females do strange things at times. Like spawning when they are not suppose to even be biting. Are where they are not suppose to be. 

[nomolites]

10 hours ago, Old plug said:

Armens has messed up the white bass. Crappie and black can fool everyone with there spawning habits. Often it is under docks, deeper and later. People come down in April and fish the brush. They often catch small mails and females. That does not mean the big ones are not there. Those big females do strange things at times. Like spawning when they are not suppose to even be biting. Are where they are not suppose to be. 

I won't say they suspend in the basins on their way in and out because I can't support that statement with anything other than livewells full of 11"-15"crappie.

Mike

[fishinwrench]

One year the crappie positioned on No-Wake bouy cables, suspended 7-12 ft. and we tore 'em up for almost a full month just running around fishing bouys out in the middle of coves.  We really thought we were onto something, but I've never found them like that since in the numbers that they were that one year.     Fish are crazy !   And trying to figure them out will drive YOU crazy too.  

[rangerman]

I agreed with wrench and nomolites. When taking people out and about to crappie fish I don't hardly ever mess with docks anymore. Go to the creek channels and look for suspended fish. And 9 times out of 10 the darn things will be suspended 10-15 foot deep over 40 or so foot of water.  I run boards, snap weights and lead core.  Most if not all will be well above average crappie. 

Then again one week you will catch a pile in a short period of time and 4 days later they have vanished from the same area. 

They can keep you thinking....?

[Chief Grey Bear]

We had a spot up the Elk River arm onGrand that always produced. About 6 or 8 a day. Day after day after day. You would never limit out but could always score some fish. 

It was in an old channel at a bend. There was one stick sticking out of the water. You always had to be on the old upstream side and always had to throw to the right of it. You had to throw about 6-8 feet past it and let it drift back. Nothing else would work. This lasted about 5-6 years until a flood finally moved the brush out.