Guys I know this is common knowledge but I do not know.

What kind of bottom should I be looking for when fishing for spawning Crappie? Gravel, sand, mud, etc...

Should it be long shallow flats or small flat spots close to deep water? Do they spawn with stick ups in the nest or completely stick free in the bed?

I've caught them spawning in creeks and coves in water with sandy bottoms. I've seen them in a foot of water. Sometimes you can see grass move as they bump it. IMHO, they like firm surfaces to spawn on.

stay away from the softer bottom areas. The sand and gravel and rocks and plant material areas are good places to target. When in doubt, just stick your rod down to the bottom and see if it is firm stuff or not...if it's mud, move on.

With the lakes so low for so long, it gave people a great opportunity to study areas of the lake to see what kind of bottom was there. Now that a lot of those areas are underwater, you have the knowledge of what you are fishing over

typicaly on a gravel bottom with stick ups and brush in the mix,shallow under 2 ft

Well, sorta. I agree with everyone on the hard bottom, and it doesn't seem to make much difference what the make-up of the bottom is as long as its hard, but, I've seen crappie spawn as deep as 12'. The depth that crappie spawn at in a given lake is determined by topography, available spawning areas in a lake, water clarity, wave action, water elevation stability, water temp at depths, predation, etc. Never lock yourself in on what a crappie will/won't do, cause that's when you will find that you know very little about them.....I've been there, done that.

Crappie, I don't trust em.

They will always look for a hard bottom to spawn on. Depth really depends on the clarity of the water. The clearer the water the deeper they will spawn. They are not as predictable as many people think. Last year the normal spawning beds on Lavon were high and dry. You had to really adjust your way of thinking to catch fish.

Reggie

Yup!

Hit on your girl and take your last beer without saying a word! A sneaky fish with no morals!

Guys,

Thank you for your thoughts. With fishing there is never an absolute other than you will not catch any fish if you don't go fish, but it gives me a place to start.

As for my girl, she does not like to fish but the upside is it is much more difficult for the crappie to make their moves when she is not at the lake.

Target wind blown rocky points if available...fish look for the more oxygen rich area to spawn....just a thought.

Maybe not. I tend to find crappie spawning in quite places with little wave action. Wave action stirs the silt and sand and covers the eggs. They won't hatch and the fish know that. Waves also wash the eggs out of the nest area. What Guy said is right on.

+1 Fish seem to like quiet areas to spawn.

North shorelines of secondary coves with hard bottoms.

And don't put the fish you catch in same cooler as your beer.

Only said that cause there are three rock points where I fish in the south side of our lake.....it's all rock/gravel 6-8 foot deep and they seem to like it.

My Partner Pul almost won last Sat @Cypress with 12# All were at40ft.
But they are traveling shallow making beds
you can see the rough tails nd scracted Bellies