Crappie – Syndication Server

Kayak angler lands record crappie while bass fishing

Eric Allee was targeting bass when he reeled in perhaps the largest crappie ever caught in the state.

A Colorado angler who landed perhaps the largest crappie ever caught in the state last November has been awarded a catch-and-release record.

Eric Allee was targeting bass from a kayak at McKay Lake on Nov. 12 when he spotted what he assumed were three large crappie on his forward-facing sonar unit.

Allee, a marketing director at Eagle Claw Tackle in Denver, hooked one of the fish with a 3.6-inch Berkley Flat Worm and soon realized that he might have a record crappie on his line.

On Friday, after being informed by Colorado Parks and Wildlife that his 18.25-inch black crappie had broken the previous catch-and-release length record, Allee told FTW Outdoors what went through his mind during the fight:

“It all happened so fast, but it felt like slow motion if that makes any sense. My heart was pounding, I was trying to remain tactful, and I was petrified at the same time.

“When she breached the surface, I would cringe every time her head would shake. Anyone who’s ever chased crappie knows they’re notorious for having paper-thin skin around the framework of their jaw; with a fish that heavy, if she was hooked in the thin-skinned parts of her mouth, it’s a recipe for disaster.

“After what seemed like forever, I felt instant relief when I scooped the net under her and lifted her out of the water.”

Eric Allee poses with 18.25-inch black crappie before releasing the fish. Photo: Eric Allee

Allee said the crappie weighed 3 pounds, 15 ounces on a scale he keeps on his kayak. He knew he could also shatter the Colorado weight record (3.48 pounds, set in 2017) if he killed the fish to have it weighed somewhere on a certified scale.

But Allee told FTW Outdoors that the fish was so large and magnificent-looking that he chose to toss it back after immortalizing the catch with a photograph.

“I didn’t want to kill the fish for the record,” he said. “It’s not that I’m against killing fish, I eat crappie often, but didn’t want to kill the fish just for the record.

“There’s more to it for me, too. I practice selective harvest and there’s something special about watching big fish go back.”

Colorado is not known for giant crappie, but any crappie topping three pounds is a giant.

For comparison, the all-tackle world-record black crappie in the weight category stands at 5 pounds, 7 ounces. That fish was caught at Richeison Pond in Tennessee in 2018.

The International Game Fish Assn. lists as the length (release) record a tie between five catches measuring 37 centimeters, or about 14.6 inches.

Allee said he did not consider applying to the IGFA for a possible length record and bemoaned the fact that he missed the 60-day limit for record submissions.

Crappie angler lands giant bass; ‘I thought I was hooked on a log’

A 15-year-old Arkansas angler was fishing for crappie earlier this month when his line became stuck on what he initially thought was a log. But the log began to move….

A 15-year-old Arkansas angler was casting for crappie earlier this month when his line became stuck on what he initially thought was a log.

But the log began to move and that’s when Logan Cernosek “realized it was huge fish,” he told the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.

The largemouth bass, caught April 2 at an undisclosed location in Randolph County, tipped a portable scale at 12 pounds, 4 ounces. It placed Logan among an elite few in the state who have caught bass topping 10 pounds.

The AGFC Fisheries Division stated on Facebook: “The fish was weighed on a portable scale and then released to grow even bigger and hopefully be caught again someday. Logan said he never thought he would catch a bass this big in his lifetime.”

The Arkansas record for largemouth bass is the 1976 catch of a 16-pound, 8-ounce largemouth at Mallard Lake.

The world record is a tie at 22 pounds, 4 ounces, for catches in Japan (2009) and Georgia, USA (1932).

Giant crappie catch in Kansas breaks 59-year-old record

A Kansas angler was recognized Tuesday for his recent catch of a massive white crappie that broke a 59-year-old state record.

Bobby Parkhurst of Topeka reeled the 4.07-pound, 18-inch crappie from Pottawatomie State Fishing Lake No. 2 on March 5 after enticing the fish onto his hook with a live minnow.

The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, in a news release issued Wednesday, stated that the astonishing weight of the fish “was the equivalent of six cans of soup.”

Assistant Director of Fisheries John Reinke, who measured the crappie, observed: “As fisheries biologists, we get the chance to see a lot of big fish but this one is certainly for the books. This crappie measured in at 18 inches long and 14 inches in girth, so it truly deserves a spot on the state record list.”

The previous state record was the 1964 catch of a 4.02-pound, 17.5-inch white crappie by Frank Miller.

The world record for white crappie stands at 5 pounds, 3 ounces, for a 1957 catch at Mississippi’s Enid Dam.

Georgia angler’s catch of giant crappie stuns biologists

A Georgia angler’s catch of a 3-pound, 11-ounce black crappie has captured the attention of state biologists.

James King landed the enormous crappie Sunday on the Coosa River.

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources stated Tuesday on Facebook: “Some of our fisheries biologists reported that this is the biggest crappie they’ve encountered in their careers.

“This is also the biggest crappie submitted for an angler award in over 20 years according to our electronic records.”

Photo: Georgia Department of Natural Resources

The Georgia record for black crappie is 4 pounds, 4 ounces, set in 1971 and tied in 1975.

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“Might be time for someone to land a new one. Who knows?” the Georgia DNR continued.

For comparison, the world record for black crappie is 5 pounds, 7 ounces, set at Tennessee’s Richeison Pond in 2018.

–Images showing James King and his 3-pound, 11-ounce crappie are courtesy of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources

Woman lands record crappie on 35th wedding anniversary

A Tennessee woman celebrating her 35th wedding anniversary last weekend reeled in a 3-pound white crappie to set a waterbody record.

A Tennessee woman celebrating her 35th wedding anniversary last weekend reeled in a 3-pound white crappie to establish a lake record.

Beverly Shaw and her husband were fishing at J. Percy Priest Lake with Brian Carper’s Guide Service when the 17-inch crappie struck. It was the largest white crappie ever landed at the 42-mile-long reservoir in north-central Tennessee.

Photo courtesy of Brian Carper’s Guide Service

Guide Eric Dickens boasted about the catch Sept. 5 on Facebook:

“Ok, just got the fish weighed on a certified scale. Miss Beverly Shaw on my trip yesterday afternoon has officially got the Percy Priest white crappie lake record. Coming in at a certified 3 pounds.”

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For comparison, the Tennessee state record is a 5-pound, 1-ounce white crappie caught at Garner Brown’s Pond in 1968.

The state record for black crappie stands at 5 pounds, 7 ounces.

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Anglers cited for catching 100-plus crappie over the legal limit

In the past two weeks, crappie anglers in Nebraska have been cited multiple times for grossly exceeding the daily bag limit.

For some Nebraska anglers, it seems, a daily bag limit of 15 crappie is not even close to being sufficient.

In the past two weeks, according to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, numerous anglers have been cited for grossly exceeding the limit at Standing Bear Lake.

During one visit, Conservation Officers cited three people for possessing more crappie than regulations allow. One angler possessed 119 crappie, or 104 crappie over the bag limit.

During another visit, an angler was found in possession of 121 crappie, or 106 crappie over the limit.

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, which addressed this issue Friday via Facebook, did not disclose possible penalties for those cited. The commission did state that the fish were seized as evidence.

The agency added: “It’s the job of our Conservation Officers to prevent poaching, which includes over-fishing. Overfishing can be detrimental to the ecosystem. There are reasons for limits and far-reaching consequences when people choose to poach and over-consume.”

Some in the comments section called on the commission to impose lifetime fishing bans on those who were cited for excessive over-limits.

‘Extremely rare’ golden crappie landed by ice fisherman

A Minnesota angler wasn’t sure what to think after reeling through the ice a gold-colored fish that resembled a crappie in shape only.

A Minnesota angler wasn’t sure what to think after reeling through the ice a brightly colored fish that resembled a crappie in shape only.

“I thought maybe it was a sunfish due to the color, but after I got it out of the hole I thought it had the body of a crappie,” Rick Konakowitz, 60, told FTW Outdoors. “I was a little perplexed.”

Common crappie are speckled, greenish-colored panfish targeted by anglers across the United States.

Rick Konakowitz poses with golden crappie

The nine-inch crappie caught by Konakowitz last Wednesday at Clear Lake was bright yellow and gold, described by the angler as “a once-in-a-lifetime fish.”

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Alan Lackmann, a researcher at the University of Minnesota Duluth, told ABC affiliate KSTP that crappie of this color are “extremely rare in wild populations.”

The crappie boasted what KSTP described as “an over-expression of pigment.”

Common crappie. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Loren Miller, a biologist for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, told the network, “It’s a rarity for sure for any one individual to manage to catch one.”

Because the crappie could not blend with its surroundings and was vulnerable to predatory fish, both scientists were surprised that it had survived this long.

Konakowitz, who is from Hanska, was ice fishing with a Glow Devil lure and had landed at least one ordinary crappie before his monumental catch.

“The golden crappie to me was the biggest surprise in all my years of fishing,” he said, adding that he plans to have a taxidermist construct a replica for a trophy mount.

Anglers busted with 152 crappie over the daily limit

Authorities in Mississippi have busted two anglers in possession of 152 crappie over the limit at Enid Lake.

Apparently, a statewide daily creel limit of 30 crappie was not sufficient for two anglers at Mississippi’s Enid Lake.

Authorities on Thursday announced that after receiving a recent call regarding “suspicious activity” at the lake, an officer encountered two individuals in possession of 152 crappie over the limit.

The bust was carried out by Cpl. Brian Tallent of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks. The unidentified anglers also were charged with game violations.

The DWFP’s Col. Jerry Carter stated in a news release: “We would like to thank the general public for reporting game violations thereby allowing our officers to further protect our state’s wildlife resources. We would also like to thank Cpl. Brian Tallent for his work in this investigation.”

The world record for white crappie – 5 pounds, 3 ounces, by angler Fred Bright – was set at Enid Lake in 1957.

Angler about to cook crappie discovers ‘monster’ could be record

Jason Ren was planning to invite a friend over for a crappie cookout until he opened his cooler and re-examined his catch.

Jason Ren caught a bunch of crappie from a private lake in Vancouver, Canada, and was planning to invite a friend over for a cookout until he opened his cooler and re-examined his catch.

One particular crappie stood out from the rest. It was a 17-inch black crappie, and a potential record in British Columbia.

Ren explained to Richmond News: “I landed a bunch of fish and I initially was thinking how to use lemon juice, pepper, and salt to turn them into a delicious meal on my way home. I was also planning to invite my friend Tammy to my home for dinner. But, it wasn’t until I opened the cooler and found this monster-size fish [that I realized it might be a record].

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“I asked my fishing buddies to take a look, and they were all surprised by the size of my fish.”

Since the B.C. record for black crappie is 15 inches (caught by Roger Chen at Hatzic Lake on Sept. 26, 2015), Ren submitted his fish to Record Fish Canada for record consideration. So, his catch is a pending record.

Ren told Richmond News he caught the fish on a lake in the Metro Vancouver area, adding, “It’s a private lake. The fish could grow so big because the lake has never been disturbed by other fishermen.”

Photos courtesy of Jason Ren.

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Angler on private lake shatters New York crappie record

A New York angler has shattered the state record for white crappie by reeling a 4.42-pound crappie from the same lake that yielded the previous record 20 years ago.

A New York angler has shattered the state record for white crappie by reeling a 4-pound, 7-ounce crappie from the same lake that yielded the previous record 20 years ago.

Roy Isaac’s Aug. 21 catch at Sleepy Hollow Lake replaces a tie involving 3.13-pound crappies caught at Sleepy Hollow Lake in 2001 and Kinderhook Lake in 2013.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation announced the new record Wednesday afternoon, stating on Facebook that Isaac’s crappie measured 19 inches and was caught on a live minnow.

Sleepy Hollow Lake is within a private residential community and Isaac, who is from Albany, told Field & Stream that he fishes at the lake regularly, with his two sons, on the invitation of a friend who owns a home in the community.

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Isaac, 62, had been catching large crappies from the same dock in recent weeks so he kept at it with the record in mind. The giant crappie struck as he slowly jigged at a depth of 25 feet.

“All of a sudden I got a hit,” he told Field & Stream. “But then nothing really happened so I started bringing the bait up. As soon as I got it closer to the shore, the fish saw me and took off. It was a good thing I had my drag set right.”

Isaac was using an ultralight rig and a reel spooled with 4-pound-test line.

For the sake of comparison, the International Game Fish Assn. lists as the all-tackle world record a 5-pound, 3-ounce white crappie caught at Enid Dam in Mississippi in 1957.

–Image courtesy of Risa Getman