Habitat Characteristics of Black Crappie Nest Sites in an Illinois Impoundment

Ten nest colonies of black crappie Pomoxis nigromaculatus were visually located and verified by angling in Campus Lake, a small urban impoundment in southern Illinois. Habitat characteristics were measured at these nest sites and compared to habitat measurements obtained from 45 unused sites. Seven habitat characteristics (substrate firmness, temperature, dissolved oxygen, distance to deep water [3.8-m depth contour], substrate type, vegetation height, and vegetation density) were significantly different between nest sites and unused sites. Although temperature and dissolved oxygen were significantly different between nest sites and unused sites, all values were within the suitable range for black crappie spawning to occur. Black crappies selected nest sites close to deep water with firm substrates and low vegetation height and density. Our results present insight on habitat characteristics of black crappie spawning locations in a small urban impoundment. Interestingly, we located several black crappie nesting colonies with more than 10 individual nests in close proximity to one another; colonial nesting by black crappies has not previously been reported in the literature. Furthermore, we suggest that degree of shoreline modification and other anthropogenic influences in and adjacent to Campus Lake did not affect black crappie nest site selection. Black crappie nest sites in Campus Lake were always located near deep water (3.8 m), in low-density, short vegetation, and on firm clay or sand substrate; because nest site selection can influence earlylife survival and recruitment of black crappie, the availability of these habitat characteristics may regulate black crappie population demographics in Campus Lake. Efforts to limit sediment inputs will be important for maintaining suitable black crappie spawning habitat in Campus Lake and other small impoundments

Egg Development in a High-Density Black Crappie (\u3ci\u3ePomoxis nigromacuIatus\u3c/i\u3e) Population

Female black crappie (Pomoxis nigromaculatus) were collected from Richmond Lake, South Dakota and egg-diameter frequencies were examined to document spawning strategy during 1994. Two hundred and sixteen adult females [mean total length (TL) ±SE = 204 ± 1 mm] were collected and 85,572 egg diameters were measured. Female black crappie gonadosomatic-index (GSI) values exceeded 8% from 18 May to 22 June 1994, and the density of larval black crappie caught with an ichthyoplankton net peaked on 8 June 1994. The GSI values and larval catches indicated that the population, as a whole, had a single extended spawn from mid-May through mid-June. However, patterns of egg-diameter distributions were inconsistent among individual female black crappie. It appeared that some females spawned only once during 1994, while others probably spawned twice

Status, trends, and population demographics of selected sportfish species in the La Grange Reach of the Illinois River

Sportfish species, specifically Yellow Bass Morone mississippiensis, White Bass Morone chrysops, Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides, Bluegill Lepomis macrochirus, Black Crappie Pomoxis nigromaculatus, and White Crappie P. annularis, often drive economically valuable fisheries in large river systems, including the Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS). Within the Illinois River, part of the UMRS, these species are routinely sampled by an ongoing long-term fisheries monitoring program. Through this program, we investigated long-term trends (1993-2017) in catch rates and relative weights and quantified demographic rates from 2012-2016. We found all six species, with the exception of Yellow Bass, to have declining catch rates with this decline being most stark in larger, older fishes. Population demographics for Yellow Bass, White Bass, Bluegill, and Black Crappie suggest populations are dominated by younger individuals, with only Black Crappie regularly living to age 3 and older, which may be driving population declines. There are many environmental stressors acting on the Illinois River that could be contributing to the lack of older and larger fishes, including, but not limited to, navigation efforts, altered hydrology, pollution, sedimentation, lack of overwintering habitat, and introduction of invasive species. Results of this study demonstrate that additional research to understand mechanisms driving reduced abundance and stunted age structure are needed to identify effective management actions that would benefit populations of recreationally valuable sportfish species.is peer reviewedOpe

White and Black Crappies in Clear Lake, Summer, 1960

Studies of white crappie, Pomoxis annularis, and black crappie, Pomoxis nigromaculatus, showed a shift in the population in Clear Lake during the past 10 years from a dominance of black to white crappies. A decrease in the rate of growth of black crappies was shown for this period although the rate of growth of white crappies has remained constant. The food habits of white and black crappies were very similar. The three most important food items were Cladocera, fish, and insect larvae, in that order. Young-of-the-year samples indicated that the trend toward white crappies was continuing. Turbidity was suggested as a possible reason for these changes

Population Demographics of Crappies (Pomoxis spp.) and Comparison of Fish Community Monitoring Techniques in Smithland Pool of the Ohio River

Large rivers in the United States support popular recreational and commercial fisheries despite being among the most heavily anthropogenically modified habitats due to the construction of dams and levees, agricultural and industrial pollution, and channel modification, all of which can disrupt aquatic ecosystem function and affect fish community composition and abundance. However, despite their relative importance, riverine fisheries research tends to lag behind that of lakes and reservoirs due to the complexity of habitats and difficulties in reliably sampling dynamic waterbodies. Many fisheries biologists, researchers, and managers have implemented long-term resource monitoring programs on large rivers to collect and aggregate data on fish assemblage, population demographics, and vital rates. Nonetheless, much is still unknown about many riverine sport and non-game fish populations and how the design and implementation of these monitoring programs affects the data collected. This study aimed to fill the knowledge gap around Smithland Pool, Ohio River Black Crappie (Pomoxis nigromaculatus) and White Crappie (Pomoxis annularis) populations, as well as use fish community data from the random site selection long-term electrofishing program (LTEF) in the Smithland Pool Ohio River and fixed site IDNR annual community sampling programs in the mainstem Smithland Pool (OHR) and Illinois tributaries (OHT) from 2012-2021 to compare measures of fish assemblage structure and relative abundance and size for select sportfish populations between concurrent fixed and random site selection sampling programs in Smithland Pool, with broader implications of the relative strengths of different site selection methods in the implementation of long-term large river fish monitoring programs. Crappie are infrequently encountered in the mainstem Smithland Pool and so were sampled in the lower reaches of seven tributaries in the fall and spring of 2020 and 2021. IDNR provided additional specimens through their annual fall tributary fish community monitoring efforts. Crappies were aged using whole sagittal otoliths and population demographics and vital rates were calculated for each species. Year-class strength was represented by catch curve residuals and correlational relationships with a variety of environmental factors were established. LASSO regression models were also used to eliminate unimportant variables. Smithland Pool tributary Black Crappie and White Crappie size structure, condition, growth rates, and mortality rates were consistent with other regional fisheries. White Crappie exhibited relatively lower mortality rates, faster growth rates, and a higher proportion of larger fish in the population, though 1.7x more Black Crappie were captured than White Crappie. Strong Black Crappie year-classes were positively associated with post-spawn (June-September) Ohio River discharge while strong White Crappie year-classes were positively associated with fall (October-December) air temperature, a proxy for water temperature. The findings of this study suggest that Smithland Pool Ohio River tributary crappie population structure and vital rates are such that they can support current levels of angler harvest and highlight the differential effects of environmental variables on either crappie species’ reproductive success. Rates of Smithland Pool tributary crappie fishing mortality are currently unknown and verification of vital rates, size structure, and environmental variable-recruitment relationships is needed to ensure proper management of these species into the future. ANOSIM and NMDS analysis indicated clear significant differences between fish assemblages observed through different programs, largely driven by centrarchid species, among others, who associated more with relatively structure rich tributary and fixed site mainstem habitats. Differences in CPUE and size structure of Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus), Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides), Longear Sunfish (Lepomis megalotis), Redear Sunfish (Lepomis microlophus), and Spotted Bass (Micropterus punctulatus) between programs were inconsistent among species but generally, fixed site tributary sampling caught experienced the highest CPUE, followed by fixed site river sampling and finally random site mainstem sampling. Observed size structure was most similar between fixed and random site river sampling programs, while fixed site tributary sampling generally yielded the smallest size structure, suggesting differential habitat use by fishes of different sizes/ages. These results help to inform the effects of site selection protocols and sampling location on data collected through long-term large river monitoring programs, provide guidelines regarding proper application of data from such programs, as well identify complementary relationships between concurrently implemented sampling designs

Juvenile crappie growth and bioenergetics: implications for management using blacknose crappie

Collectively, black crappie Pomoxis nigromaculatus and white crappie P. annularis make up important harvest-oriented sport fisheries across North America, especially in the Midwest. Over the past several decades, the major management issues facing crappie populations have been identified as poor size structure and highly variable recruitment. Although stocking programs have not been historically common for crappie, some recent examples have been successful in supplementing year classes in systems with poor recruitment. In order to differentiate stocked from naturally occurring individuals for evaluations of stocking programs, several management agencies have cultured and stocked blacknose crappie, a phenotypic variant of black crappie. Continued use of blacknose crappie by managers has also stemmed from perceived differences in growth and survival relative to black crappie in rearing environments. My thesis evaluates growth-related differences among juvenile black, white, and blacknose crappies in both experimental ponds and the laboratory. In a common garden pond experiment, I found no differences in survival among strains or ponds. Blacknose crappie outgrew black and white crappies in both length and weight and black crappie outgrew white crappie in just weight. Growth was pond-dependent for all strains, with growth rates being highest in ponds with high zooplankton density, low macroinvertebrate density, and low vegetation density. Turbidity also may have had indirect effects on the growth of black and blacknose crappies, but not white crappie. Across a range of temperatures in the laboratory, I found no differences in metabolic rate among the strains. I also observed superior growth characteristics of blacknose crappie in the laboratory, as they exhibited higher relative growth rates and food conversion efficiencies than black and white crappies. Black and blacknose crappies also had higher maximum food consumption rates than white crappie. No strain-temperature interactions were detected for the suite of parameters measured, suggesting a lack of differential thermal adaptations among black, white, and blacknose crappies. Differences in growth and food conversion efficiency between blacknose and black crappies may be attributable to selective pressures associated with the multi-decadal culture of the strain, especially in a species where survival and handling mortality are highly size-dependent. My laboratory results indicated ontogenetic shifts in thermal optima for juvenile crappies when compared to previous studies with adult white crappie. Results of my thesis can improve future juvenile crappie bioenergetics models and advise management decisions using blacknose crappie. Blacknose crappie may provide a better alternative to other crappies for stocking programs, but potential negative impacts on resident crappie populations need to be investigated in the future due to the origin of the strain coming from a single source population. Blacknose crappie exhibit superior growth characteristics over black and white crappies in rearing environments and these relationships should be evaluated further at larger spatial scales and across varying environmental conditions

Age and growth of black crappie pomoxis nigromaculatus in Lake Anna, a Virginia Power cooling impoundment

A study of the age and growth of black crappie, Pomoxis nigromaculatus, was conducted in Lake Anna, Virginia, a cooling impoundment for Virginia Power\u27s North Anna Power Station. Growth of the population in the reservoir was compared to that of the population in North Anna\u27s Waste Heat Treatment Facility. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) using age as the covariate indicated the growth rate of the two populations did not differ significantly at the .05 level. The populations were combined and tests were conducted to determine differences in growth rates between the sexes. ANCOVA indicated the growth rates of males and females differed significantly; however, frequency distributions indicated there was no substantial difference in growth of the sexes. Growth of the black crappie population in Lake Anna was then compared to similar populations in Virginia and surrounding states. The Lake Anna population grew at a slower rate than was reported for other populations. Habitat availability, lake characteristics, and food availability were discussed as factors which may have limited the growth rate of the Lake Anna population

The Crappies

The names: bachelor, campbellite, white bass, camp lighter, sac-a-lait, silver crappie, speckled bass, tinmouth, bar fish, Oswego bass, razorback, grassback, shiner, john demon, calico bass, strawberry bass and "crap'pee," along with 10-20 others, all refer to two rather than one species of fish. Most Maryland fishermen when applying these time honored names do not realize they are referring to two distinct species of fish. These species are the black crappie, Pornoxis nigromaculatus, and the white crappie, Pornoxis annulars. Contrary to common belief, the white crappie does not change into a black crappie during parts of the year nor are these two fish just color phases of one species. Crappies are members of the freshwater sunfish family of fishes, Centrarchidae. (PDF contains 4 pages