Crappie Tagging Program

I have followed the Crappie Forever program watching the data that gets reported is fascinating.  Just when you start to think that you are understanding how Crappie live and about their 

movements along comes the data and it just would blow your mind to see what this fish really does. 

I am a tagger for Redfish (Sciaenops ocellatus) / Speckled Trout (Spotted Seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus) program in Louisiana through (TAG Louisiana) you know they are a fish that would travel many miles to feed and spawn during their lifetime.  Well after seeing some of the data that has come out of Mississippi, I would have never thought that Crappie (what I originally thought to be more on the lazy side and one not to travel far) has proven my thoughts wrong.  Along with Forward Facing Sonar (FFS) we have really learned more of the behavioral patterns and get to really see how this sought after table fare fish lives and acts.  Now with this tagging data we are slowly learning what we could do and what it takes to make a fishery into a trophy fishery.

I am super excited for this to be introduced into Louisiana.

Welcome to the Lake Darbonne Crappie Tagging Program. Our primary purpose is to promote conservation efforts and educate fisherman on our crappie population. Over the next few months, we will have a group of fisherman that will start tagging crappie. They will be recording weight, length, and location of the fish they catch. We encourage fisherman to be on the lookout for these tagged fish over the next year. These next few weeks we will be posting videos of these fish being tagged and how you as fisherman can help with this program. We are also excited to announce we will be partnering with Crappie Forever during this entire program.

Here is some of the Tagging data that was collected on Grenada Lake in Mississippi.

TAG DATA

 0752 tagged on 3-3-22 as a 14.75” 2.40. Blake Cook caught and released it on 2-17-23 as a 15.25” 2.45 about 3 miles from where I tagged it.

 0697 tagged as a 15” 2.13 on 2-19-22, Troy Garrett caught and released it on 2-17-23 as a 15.5” 2.10, about 4 miles from the tag site (opposite arm of the lake).

 0492 tagged as a 15.75” 2.07 on 10-21-21. I re-caught it on 2-18-22 as a 16.25” 2.85. The tag site was somewhat infected, so I removed the tag, retagged it in a different location and released her again.

 0969 I tagged this one on 9-11-22 as a 13” 1.16. TJ Shands caught it on 2-19-23 as a 13.75” 1.55 about a mile from the tag site.

 1229 I tagged this one 2-13-23 as a 14.25” 1.47. Trent Goss caught it again on 2-19-23 as a 14.25” 1.42 Sadly it was gill hooked, or Trent would’ve released it again. It was roughly 2 miles from the tag site in 6 days.

 0537 I tagged this one on 11-9-21 as a 14.5” 1.74 (male). Blake Cook caught it again on 2-13-23 as a 14.5” 2.05 and released it. It was still in the same general area as the tag site.

 0707 Carlos tagged this fish March 7th as a 16” 2.82. CJ Baker caught it on 2-26-23 as a 16-3/8” 2.76 about 2 miles from the tag location.

 0909 FAST GROWER   I tagged this one on 5-10-22 as a 12.5” .88. Gabe Cain caught it 2-26-23 as a 14” 2.00! It was approximately 3 miles from the tag location.

 1168 I tagged this one on 2-11-23 as a 13” 1.21. Alex Bonderant caught it again on 2-26-23, not surprisingly still a 13” 1.20, but it was 4-5 miles from the tag location.

 Here is a link to the Crappie Forever website where you can see the tagging data that is being done in Mississippi.

 Crappie Forever Facebook link:

https://www.facebook.com/CrappieForever

 Crappie Forever Instagram link:

https://www.instagram.com/crappieforever

 Lake D’Arbonne – Crappie Tagging Program Facebook link:

https://www.facebook.com/LakeDarbonneCrappieTaggingProgram

Crappie Forever was started by fisherman with the interests of fish and fishermen alike at heart. We are not about judgment, changing regulations, or a set of uniform rules.  It’s about awareness, personal accountability and safeguarding the future of crappie fishing. We know this topic has strong feelings surrounding it and we want to be a voice for conservation in that discussion.

The technology we have access to today has made it a dangerous world for a big crappie to live in. Catching big crappie is easier than it’s ever been and social media has put a spotlight on that. Sport is growing, ramps are packed where they used to be empty, and this is a great thing. We want this growth to continue, but there is a responsibility that goes along with that.

We all love catching crappie, and there’s nothing wrong with keeping them. Let’s be honest, there’s not a better tasting fish out there! If you’re going out to catch a mess of fish to stock the freezer that’s great! It’s your right to do it and we think you should do it with pride! However, when the freezer is already stocked and you’re keeping limits of big fish just because you can, that’s when we want you to stop and think about the way you’re doing things. We as anglers have a duty to protect our natural resources. It is our responsibility to make sure the sport is around for generations to come.

Ethical behavior is doing the right thing when no one else is watching, even when doing the wrong thing is legal.

- Aldo Leopold

All information in this post was gathered from:

 Crappie Forever

Lake D’Arbonne – Crappie Tagging Program

Photos by Patrick Stone Fishing.