photos by billy pope
By Jack Turner, State Lake Supervisor and Jay Haffner, District III
Fisheries Supervisor, Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries
Black and white crappie are two of the most
popular sport fish in Alabama.
They are easy to catch, taste great,
and are found in most lakes, rivers, and reservoirs throughout the
state, as well as in some ponds. At
first glance, they seem like the perfect
fish to stock into a fish pond and many
pond owners have done just that. Unfortunately, looks can be deceiving.
o u td o o r a l abama W eb E x tra
For crappie jigging tips and tricks watch
this Outdoor Alabama Web Video at
http://bit.ly/jigging
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Outdoor Alabama | July 2012
Typically Not for Ponds
Crappie are anything but perfect for a
fish pond. Crappie are prolific spawners
and reproduce about the same time as bass.
Crappie compete with bass and bream for
food, and they often eat young bass and
bream. When a strong crappie year-class
develops (on a 3- to 5-year cycle) they can
become overpopulated, deplete their food
supply, and become stunted. Typically
when that happens, bluegill growth and
production grinds to a halt, bass become
less numerous, and overall fishing quality
declines rapidly. Often, pond owners with
stunted crappie populations are forced to
drain their ponds in order to restore highquality recreational fishing. For that reason,
Alabama’s Fisheries Section strongly discourages stocking crappie into fish ponds.
Some Exceptions
But, there are exceptions to every rule,
as the Fisheries Section discovered at the
state’s public fishing lakes (State Lakes).
Biologists observed crappie fisheries can be
established in state lakes without adversely
impacting bass and bream populations.
A good example is Dallas County Lake,
a 100-acre public fishing lake located 14
miles south of Selma on Highway 41. It was
built in 1955 and opened to the public in
1959. Oaks draped in Spanish moss, mature cedars and towering pines surround
the lake. The fertile prairie watershed fuels
this fish factory. The lake appears to be a
big bathtub, but there’s a lot more structure
(cover) in the lake than meets the eye. Trees
have been dropped along the shoreline, and
numerous fish reefs (marked with buoys)
are present. You can drive and park around
much of the lake and have just a short walk
to the bank. Dallas County Lake has supported an outstanding crappie fishery for
several years.
As a result of fish population and angler
surveys, as well as catch record data collected by State Lake managers, biologists
have identified the key to successful crappie
management in Alabama’s State Lakes.
State Lake anglers enthusiastically harvest crappie early and often. Crappie in
most State Lakes were capable of growing
to a harvestable size (6 to 8 inches) in a
couple of years. As quickly as crappie grow
to that size, anglers catch them and carry
them home. In the last 10 years at Dallas
County Lake, crappie have averaged less
than 0.3 pounds, but anglers took home
126,000 of them! Catch records from other
State Lakes showed the same pattern —
relatively small crappie, but large numbers
harvested by eager anglers.
Secret to Success
Fisheries Section biologists concluded
that it is essential for anglers to harvest
large numbers of small crappie from State
Lakes. Their removal played a key role in
maintaining a dynamic and productive
fishery. When anglers harvest small crappie week after week, those that remain have
more to eat, grow larger and eventually get
caught by other anglers. Biologists and State
Lake managers are pleased to see anglers
catching fish — it’s good for business and
it’s good for families, especially kids. Fresh
fish is also important for our diet.
So, what about crappie in private ponds?
Unfortunately, the lessons learned from
State Lake crappie do little to help private
pond owners. If anything, they underscore
the dangers of stocking crappie in bassbream ponds. That is because most pond
owners cannot generate the amount of
fishing pressure nor the harvest seen at
State Lakes. For example, almost 92,000
anglers have visited Dallas County Lake
in the last 10 years. That works out to an
average of 92 angler trips per acre per year.
An owner of a 10-acre pond would need
to fish 900 times a year to achieve comparable fishing pressure. That would be nearly
impossible for most pond owners to accomplish.
But the high harvest rates and outstanding fertility are essential elements of
maintaining Dallas County Lake’s crappie
fishery. Unless a pond owner could generate sufficient fishing effort and remove large
numbers of crappie, there would be a real
danger of crappie becoming stunted, bass
and bream populations declining, and the
overall quality of fishing being reduced.
This is the reason that the Fisheries Section recommends avoiding crappie in
private fish ponds.
State Lakes Best
for Crappie
Successful crappie fisheries are not
found in all State Lakes. Some State Lakes
are crowded with bass. In these lakes, the
bass simply eat too many small crappie for
the population to expand.
Dallas County Lake has been the best
crappie lake in the State Lake system for
the last 10 years. In north Alabama, La-
mar County Lake has the best fishery.
Although the numbers aren’t as high as
Dallas, the crappie are larger. Fayette and
Madison County lakes also have good
crappie fisheries.
In south Alabama, crappie are very
abundant in Crenshaw County Lake,
though they are small. Often, Pike County
Lake produces a strong crappie population.
Other State Lakes, such as Walker, Clay,
Marion and Geneva, produce good fisheries in some years, but are not as consistent
as the lakes listed above.
Fishing State Lakes
Alabama State Lakes are managed for
the public to enjoy. The next time you’d like
to wet a line, visit one of your State Lakes. A
daily fishing permit is required for anglers
in addition to a freshwater fishing license.
For complete information on each of the
lakes, visit www.outdooralabama.com/fishing/freshwater/where/lakes.
Alabama State Fishing Lakes
Telephone Day
LocationNumber
Closed
Barbour Co.
(temporarily closed)
Bibb Co.
(temporarily closed)
Chambers Co.
(334) 864-8145Tuesday
Clay Co.
(256) 488-0038Thursday
Coffee Co.
(334) 897-6833Monday
Crenshaw Co.
(334) 335-2572Tuesday
Dale Co.
(334) 774-0588 Wednesday
Dallas Co.
(334) 874-8804Monday
DeKalb Co.
(256) 657-1300 Wednesday
Escambia Co. (251) 809-0068
Fayette Co. (205) 932-6548Monday
Geneva Co. (334) 449-5884Thursday
Lamar Co.
(205) 695-8283Tuesday
Lee Co.
Monday
(temporarily closed)
Madison Co.
(256) 776-4905 Wednesday
Marion Co.
(205) 921-7856 Wednesday
Monroe Co.
(251) 789-2104Monday
Pike Co.
(334) 242-3471None
Walker Co.
(205) 221-1801 Wednesday
Washington Co. (251) 846-2512Monday
www.outdooralabama.com
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