Crappies easily adapt to varied water temperature, depth, structure, as well as forage, therefore enabling them to exist in a wealth of environments. If you want to catch crappies in my home state of Minnesota, break out a county map, cover your eyes, extend your index finger and randomly select a lake. Chances are that the piece of water you've arbitrarily selected holds black or white crappies. But what if you want more. In general, lakes covering in excess of 2,500 surface acres meet the requirement.
Small lakes are highly susceptible to cycles.
Local anglers quickly rape other smallish lakes that suddenly undergo a boon of large panfish, and as the word spreads, more and more fishermen arrive to harvest. In short, small lakes are vulnerable to both Mother Nature and fishing pressure. The sheer massiveness of big lakes, on the other hand, offers protection from both winterkill, and to a certain degree, fishing pressure. In fact, depth is at least as important in creating a top-notch crappie fishery as is the total surface area. Deep water is vital to growing and sustaining trophy crappies.