Teleostei (teleosts) >
Centrarchiformes (Basses) >
Centrarchidae (Sunfishes)
Etymology: Pomoxis: Greek, poma, -atos = cover, operculum + Greek, oxys = sharp (Ref. 45335); annularis: annularis--having rings, referring to the bars on the body (Ref. 10294).
More on author: Rafinesque.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; demersal. Temperate; ? - 31°C (Ref. 12741); 40°N - 35°N
North America: Great Lakes, Hudson Bay and Mississippi River basins from New York, USA and from Ontario, Canada west to Minnesota and South Dakota and south to the Gulf of Mexico in the USA; Gulf drainages from Mobile Bay in Georgia and Alabama to Nueces River in Texas, USA.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 53.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 5723); common length : 25.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 12193); max. published weight: 2.4 kg (Ref. 4699); max. reported age: 10 years (Ref. 12193)
Occurs in sand-bottomed and mud-bottomed pools and backwaters of creeks and small to large rivers, and lakes and ponds. Often found in turbid water (Ref. 5723, 10294). Adult feeds on forage fishes such as shad (Ref. 10294). Younger crappie consumes small invertebrates, including microcrustaceans and small insects (Ref. 10294).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Deposits eggs in a variety of aquatic plants.
Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr, 1991. A field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 432 p. (Ref. 5723)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: subsistence fisheries; gamefish: yes
Tools
Special reports
Download XML
Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.7500 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01023 (0.00876 - 0.01195), b=3.08 (3.03 - 3.13), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 4.4 ±0.6 se; based on diet studies.
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (Assuming tm=2-4; Fec up to 140,000).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Moderate vulnerability (41 of 100).