“Gene,” said one officer, “these crappie began showing up last year. They were small, but they are up to a size now that makes them pretty attractive. If you weigh this with the fact that we haven’t had many crappie spots in this area and the fact that many of these fishermen haven’t really fished much of anything except catfish, it helps explain the tackle. Give them a couple more years, and I’m sure they will adjust their gear to give the crappie a chance to scrap a little and themselves a better chance to catch more fish.”

Today a common rig seen at Medicine, and on other crappie waters, is a light or ultralight spin rig loaded with 4- to 8-pound-test mono.

Anglers should check the 2008 Nebraska fishing regulations before going after the popular panfish. The statewide daily limit is 30 panfish, and the possession limit is 60; however, special regulations do apply on some areas -- particularly on urban waters. There is a 10-inch minimum-size limit on a number of popular lakes, such as Branched Oak, Sherman County, Czechland, Cottonmill, Wehrspann and Zorinsky, but that size restriction is not applicable to the latter two during April.