Rare ‘golden crappie’ caught on Minnesota lake

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Rare ‘golden crappie’ caught on Minnesota lake
Ben Henry KSTP
Updated: February 6, 2022 – 9:08 PM
Published: February 6, 2022 – 8:09 PM

Fish experts say the catch is about as rare as winning a lottery — and one Minnesota angler hit the jackpot when he reeled in a golden crappie.

That angler is Rick Konakowitz who says he was using a “glow devil” lure when the once-in-a-lifetime fish struck his line.

“I thought maybe it was a sunfish or because of the color,” Konakowitz said. “When I pulled it out, I looked at it and said ‘what is this?’” he added about the golden crappie caught on Clear Lake, near New Ulm.

“They’re extremely rare in wild populations,” Dr. Alec Lackmann, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Minnesota Duluth, said.

“It was pretty striking to see such a vividly bright orange golden color like that,” Lackmann said about seeing the picture of the golden crappie for the first time.

Lackmann said the fish is a “Xanthic Crappie,” but added it’s safe to call it a golden crappie. Like an albino animal, Lackmann said the fish has an over-expression of pigment — for this fish it’s a yellow pigment, giving it that bright yellow, gold and orange color.

For those unfamiliar with what a common crappie looks like and the difference between the two is extreme:

Fish geneticist for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Loren Miller said the catch can be compared to winning the lottery.

“It’s a rarity for sure for any one individual to manage to catch one,” Miller said.

Both fish experts say there’s a chance there are more crappies like this near the lake it was caught. They also said they were surprised this specific fish lived as long as it has — that’s because its flashy, bright color is a target for predators.

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Wow. Is it more rare than the green sunfish? Very cool.

Very cool. When I first saw it I figured it was something that somebody had in a fish tank and released it

Cool indeed! Blue walleyes and now golden crappies.

That is f-ing cool.

I caught this Blue Perch in Spirit Lake Ia. a few years ago. Guy at the bait shop said he had only seen about 3 in 20 years. Have no idea if it was in fact that rare!

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I’ve seen and caught a number of “blue” walleyes up on the border waters. A few years ago, I caught and released a 24″ walleye up on Crooked that had the most golden bright belly mixed with a vibrant bluish hue along its back and fins. Was a gorgeous fish! My canoe partner got a couple of pics, but they didn’t do it any justice. Thinking back on that I would loved to have had a competent camera person in my canoe that day.

That is a sweet looking fish. I wonder how long it will survive with that bright color.

He was a lot bluer than the picture shows. Till they came on in The Mississippi. I didn’t live within 100 miles of a decent perch. Why I drove 5 1/2 hours to Spirit Lake. So, I haven’t seen that many.

Does it spit gold coins like on the Geico commercial?

buck-slayer wrote:

Does it spit gold coins like on the Geico commercial?

J.

In July 2020, I caught a blue phase largemouth bass on a small lake about an hour from my house. There appeared to be nothing wrong with it from a physical stand point, and it fought just like any other largemouth I caught that day. It was 17 inches and I released it. I sent a photo to the local DNR Fisheries Office for clarification and the Area Supervisor told me it was a rare genetic color pigmentation. He said he had seen blue phased pike and walleye before, but never a largemouth.

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I would’ve freaked out a bit pulling up a fish like that from an ice hole in MN. Totally unexpected. It’s like that bright red yelloweye rockfish in Alaska. Totally would not expect a fish of that color to live in those waters.

That Crappie looks more like FD and C yellow #5. But I no biologist.