5 Secrets for Spring Crappie Fishing

Fishing for crappie in the spring is different from fishing in the summer or fall. You will use different bait and size of bait than you would any other time.

You will fish different locations than you would during other months and you will have to watch the water conditions and the temperatures. You have to watch the spawning season closely to make sure that you get the male crappie if you do not want the females before they lay the eggs.

You will use a different technique in the spring than what you would use in other months. These are the 5 secrets for spring crappie fishing.

Bait

Make sure that you are offering bait that the crappie eats during the spring months. Because this is the time when spawning occurs, you have to offer bait that the fish will want. You can offer insects or very small minnows. The crappie is not interested in a fight so they will feed better on insects during the spring. If you have artificial bait, use something smaller than you would use in the summer and fall months.

In some cases, you can cut the minnow's head off and use the body and tail as bait. This appears smaller and is more the size that the crappie is after during spring.

Location

During the spring months, you have to look for where the fish are spawning. The males will stay with the eggs until they hatch. The females with lay the eggs and start their journey back to deeper waters. The males however, will stay and guard the eggs until they hatch. After the eggs hatch, you can expect to see the males start heading back to the deeper waters. Look in shallow waters near muddy bottoms and by fallen timber.

Water Condition and Temperature

You must no the water temperatures to know where the crappie are going to be. If the temperature of the water does not warm quickly enough during spring, the fish may be a little late to the spawn and their return to deeper waters.

The water condition as well is another concern. Crappies prefer clear waters but the white crappie can tolerate some strained water. If the water conditions are terribly strained, you might not be able to fish that day. Sometimes the wind and rain can stir up the water and make murky conditions.

Before and After the Spawn

Before the spawn, anglers can look around the areas where the crappie head to the spawning grounds. Shallow waters are idea for spawning crappies. After the spawn, you will see the females returning the deeper water while the males return a few days later.

If you want to catch crappie during the spring months, you can fish crappie during the and after the spawn. There are some ways that you can tell if you are getting a female or a male crappie during the spring months. Some anglers are not very happy when they catch the females when they are filleting the fish.

Dan Eggertsen is a fishing researcher and enthusiast who is committed to providing the best crappie fishing information possible. Go to http://www.askcrappiefishing.com/editorials/5-secrets-for-spring-crappie-fishing.html for more information on crappie fishing.