The largemouth bass is far and away the most popular freshwater game fish in America, but crappie may someday be nipping at its heels. And for folks who want to put filets in the freezer, there is no doubt that the tasty crappie, found in 49 of the 50 states, is indeed Number One. (Photo: Richard Simms)
Crappie is America’s Fish
by Brent Frazee
Dan Dannenmueller thinks he is well-qualified to talk about which species should be recognized as America’s Fish.
For years, he was obsessed with largemouth bass. Like many anglers, he fished tournaments, had enough tackle boxes filled with lures to sink a boat, and dreamed of one day making it to the Bassmaster Classic, the sport’s championship event.
But look at him now. Dannenmueller is no longer obsessed with bass. Instead, he is now similarly obsessed with another species, the crappie. And he can make a case for the popular panfish being America’s Fish.
“I could count on one hand the number of times I have fished for bass in my pond in the last couple of years,” said Dannenmueller, the publisher of CrappieNOW. “I have crappie and big bluegills in there, and that’s what I fish for.
“It’s that way wherever I go. To me, it’s more challenging to catch a big crappie than a bass.”
Yes, Dannenmueller has traded his baitcasting rod for an ultralight. And there are many other anglers like him. Surveys by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service show that crappie fishing is second only to largemouth bass fishing.
“If someone wants to take the family fishing, have a great time catching fish, and then enjoy eating what they catch, there’s nothing else like the crappie,” said Dannenmueller, 71, from Wetumpka, Ala.
“There’s something there for everyone. It can be as simple as fishing from the bank with a cheap rod, a minnow and a bobber, to fishing from a boat with forward-facing sonar.”
Widespread Popularity
Crappie can be found in every state except Alaska. Yes, they have even been introduced in Hawaii.
If you question its popularity, head to states such as Mississippi where crappie fishing rival’s bass fishing, and probably exceeds it on certain lakes.
“There is a sweet spot here in the mid-south,” said Keith Meals, a longtime fisheries biologist for the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. “In Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and parts of Texas and Oklahoma, we have pretty darned good growth rates on crappie. And we have thousands of people fishing for them.”
The chances of catching a giant crappie in Mississippi lures fishermen from across the nation. Dannenmueller caught his personal-best crappie – a monster that weighed 3.27 pounds – on Mississippi’s Grenada Lake.
Even in northern states such as Minnesota, where the walleye is king, crappie are drawing unparalleled interest.
“I think our crappie fishing is as good now as it has been in years,” said legendary fisherman Al Lindner. “And we have more people fishing for them.”
A Widening Demographic
“Crappie fishing is attracting younger participants than ever before,” Dannenmueller said. “For many years, crappie fishing’s strongest demographic was 60 years old and older. But now, we are more in the middle – 40 years and older.”
But crappie fishing still has a strong following among senior citizens. Dannenmueller has a theory about that.
“As bass fishermen age, a lot of them can’t stand and cast all day,” he said. “So, they go to crappie fishing, which is less strenuous.”
The Money Game
Crappie fishing’s popularity can also be judged in financial terms. An economic survey by the American Sportfishing Association showed that crappie fishermen are doling out big bucks to participate in their sport.
Crappie fishing accounted for more than $4 million annually in retail sales in the latest survey, Black-bass fishermen spent almost $7 million.
Tournaments
For those who enjoy competitive angling, there is an ever-increasing number of crappie tournaments out there.
Dannenmueller takes pride in the fact that he and his partner, Bill Braswell, won Team Angler of the Year titles in consecutive years (2010 and 2011) on the Crappie Masters Circuit.
He continues to fish in tournaments with his wife, Sue, who is representative of another trend in crappie fishing. More women are getting involved in not only the competitive side of the sport but recreational fishing as well.
“We’re seeing more and more husband-and-wife teams,” Sue said. “But it’s not just the tournaments. Sometimes when we’re out there, we’ll see women fishing off the bank. We even had one young lady come up to us at a tournament and told us that she had grown up reading CrappieNOW and watching our videos. She told us that was how she got involved in crappie fishing, which was really humbling for us.”
Getting the Word Out
Dannenmueller can gauge the explosive interest in crappie fishing by analyzing the growing readership in his digital magazine, CrappieNOW.
When he and his partners, T.J. Stallings and Tim Huffman, launched the free online magazine 14 years ago, it was designed to fill a niche. Print magazines were dwindling, yet the interest in crappie fishing was growing. Dannenmueller, Stallings (now deceased) and Huffman decided to create a digital magazine filled with shorter articles, videos and material appealing to everyone from beginners to experienced anglers.
The formula has worked.
Dannenmueller said, “Just in 2024, through the month of October, CrappieNOW readership includes more than 18 million impressions on social media, 9.9 million video views, 1.2 million website visits and 100,000 newsletter reads. We have an incredibly loyal following and our reach is expanding. I am now and will forever be a tireless promoter for the virtues of crappie fishing.”
Brent Frazee is an award-winning writer and photographer from the Kansas City suburbs. He worked for the Kansas City Star as outdoors editor for 36 years before retiring in 2016. He continues to write for magazines, websites and tourism departments. When he isn’t writing, he is out on the private lake he lives on, fishing for crappie, bass and catfish.
