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Blackdog40,Originally Posted by Blackdog40
A lot of this answer would depend on your definition of 'fished out'?
If we define 'fished out' as 'population depletion by angler harvest to the point of endangering the longevity of the fishery' then I would have to say NO. Crappie populations in our Kansas reservoirs have been found to be quite capable of withstanding angler pressure and angler harvest.
If we define 'fished out' as 'that all the 13 14 inch crappie in lakes that get heavy fishing pressure are in the frying pan' I would still say NO if angler harvest is singled out as the sole reason for lack of 13- to 14-inch crappie. More factors than just angler harvest impact and shape the population and many of these factors we have no control over. Crappie populations are cyclic and some years strong year classes may survive to reach large sizes. Anglers notice when this happens as there are high numbers of large crappie available and harvest will obviously be higher with the increased density of larger and highly desired sizes. However, without angler harvest this high density of larger fish will still obviously eventually perish as crappie life spans are relatively short (6 to 7 years is a pretty old crappie in Kansas). It takes multiple years to produce 14-inch crappie and these years must all meet some pretty tight requirements to allow for good growth. Some lakes are not capable of producing 13 and 14-inch crappie even without angler harvest. Angler harvest is beneficial in some impoundments by reducing interspecific competition in crappie which improves growth. Angler pressure gets a lot of blame, probably because it is most visible but it is only one of many factors that affects the Kansas crappie populations.
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