Color Changing Crappies

[NanookofN-MN]

This is the first year I have really had a good lake to fish that had a srong population of Crappies.  I was out fishing this weekend and noticed when I would bring the fish up from about 20 FOW they would be almost void of color, and the ones I kept would start to show the black spots with in minutes of being on the ice.  I am just wondering of that is normal and what causes the change.

[iceman_phil]

We get that too....You bring them up from 25 feet of water and they are white as ghosts and after flopping on the ice a few minutes, they turn back to having really dark, black markings, etc.

Phil

[Swift]

Just a survival adaptation. Would lay odds the fish being caught deep were over a fairly light colored bottom, like sand, gravel, marl, etc. Roughly the same coloration as the bottom, the same fish comes shallow to feed and it will naturally get darker to either match weeds or the twinkly light patterns just below the surface. Same color darkening happens during the summer with fish caught deep and thrown in the livewell for a bit, Largemouths can go from very pale to really dark in minutes. Good way at times to tell what the fish have been up to, start catching light colored fish shallow and you know they're rolling up from the depths within the past 10-15 minutes

[amcmullen]

I love the fishing shows when they bring up those neon green walleyes .  Freaky looking

[Booppr]

I caught some bluegill that were doing that, they were at about 27 feet and the water was even a light color of murkey then after being on the ice for an hour they would get a little of their color back. I was thinking the we were fishing was not right and turning the fish weird colors

[Van_Cleaver]

Another factor that seems to change crappie coloration is the water clarity/color. Some of the lakes I fish North of here are extremely dark, and the fish always have a beautiful olive hue. The black crappie around here are quite silvery by comparison. Here's one I got yesterday in the dark water:

[NanookofN-MN]

Van,

Nice looking fish!  It was kind of interesting this weekend I was back out on the same lake, same hole, same depth,  I was at a month ago and the fishing I was catching were a little darker this time then last and did not seem to change as much once on the ice.  That changing factor might be because it was much colder this time and the froze fairly quickly.

[Van_Cleaver]

The fish in the pic didn't freeze, but the colors were a little more vivid when it first came out. Also it was a cloudy day so the olive doesn't show quite as well. Here's a couple more from the same day.

[slipperybob]

I like to make my little ice well or put some water in the bucket for the first few fish, so the fish I catch generally turn more pale white after some time.

[Van_Cleaver]

Also a fan of the ice live well. Of course we have had so little ice this year, I just haven't had enough ice depth to make it work.

[bigfoot697]

During spawning on black lake, the male crappies get almost jet black and look like they were dipped in black paint.

[klbeeks]

always thought it had to do with sun and temps..

[Gills-only]

Natural Camo, most crappies I catch are dark colored coming from dark bottom(muddier) lakes. I fish a lake that is much clearer water and they are a little lighter color but not that much

[NanookofN-MN]

I was at Cabelas the other night (had to take the fiance so she could pick up a couple ice rods for her niece and nephew) we walked through the tanks and they had Crappies in the pan fish tank that were almost completely black.  I would say the up half to even two thirds of the fish was solid black.  Then the lower half or 1/3 was heavily spotted.

I have noticed the ones I am pulling from the lake now are darker then there were at first ice fishing the same spot and the same depth.  I find it interested how they can change color.

[Gills-only]

90% of the ones I catch are mostly all black, try to see them looking down a hole in a shanty in shallow water, tough!!