The South's Best Shellcracker Holes
Florida – Lake Tarpon and Lake Guntersville Shellcrackers
 Editor’s
Note: I like to catch plenty of fish that fight hard,
test my tackle and my angling skills and taste delicious
when I eat them. These characteristics describe the
shellcracker (redear sunfish) with its nicknames of
stumpknocker and yellow bream. The South homes some
of the biggest shellcrackers, so named due to the grinding
teeth in their throats that crush snails, shells and
mollusks, in the nation.
When you’re searching for a shellcracker lake
that you can depend on to consistently produce plenty
of big shellcrackers, look at Lake Tarpon in southwest
Florida located in northern Pinellas County near St.
Petersburg, Florida. “This 4,500-acre lake is
home to plenty of shell beds,” Jeff Willitzer,
biologist for the southwest region of the Florida
Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in Wakeland,
Florida, explains. “For the last seven years,
Lake Tarpon has consistently produced large shellcrackers
year round. We have a lot of submerged vegetation and
quite a few shell beds in 6- to 8-feet deep water, which
is ideal habitat for shellcrackers. Our average shellcrackers
are 8- to 10-inches long, but some anglers catch crackers
up to 12-inches long.”
Red wigglers seem to be the preferred bait. You can
catch a limit of 50-fish per person as only shellcrackers,
only bluegills or a mix of shellcrackers and bluegills.
Another lake that Willitzer suggests for big shellcrackers
is Lake Panasoffkee located in north central Florida.
To learn more about Tarpon Lake, visit http://www.laketarpon.org/
For more information about Lake Panasoffkee, check
out http://floridaconservation.org/recreation/cooperative/lake_panasoffkee.asp.
Lake Guntersville:
Alabama has several lakes that home excellent shellcracker
populations, including the Warrior Reservoir in west
Alabama, the Yates Reservoir, Lake Martin and Wilson
Lake. “But if I had to pick one lake that has
historically produced plenty of shellcrackers and bluegills,
it would be Lake Guntersville,” Nick Nichols,
assistant chief of fisheries for Alabama’s Wildlife
and Freshwater Fisheries, says. “Guntersville
is a large lake with a lot of shallow-water over-bank
areas, hard grassy bottoms and tremendous amounts of
aquatic vegetation. The shellcracker, which gets its
name from eating shells and mollusks, really thrive
in aquatic vegetation. Guntersville also receives plenty
of fishing pressure, so there’s quite a few shellcrackers
caught there every year.”
Another
area that historically produces quality shellcracker
populations is Oak Mountain State Lakes. Many shellcrackers
bed in the middles of these lakes on humps coming off
the bottom or in the sandy area around the old swimming
beach. Another hidden honey hole is Lake Gant on the
Conecuh River, which is only about 4,500 acres and located
north of Andalusia. This lake has a high catch rate
and produces some really-large shellcrackers. Because
it’s small and out of the way, this secret shellcracker
hole is one most locals prefer to keep to themselves.
Yates Reservoir is another sleeper lake that’s
located near the town of Tallassee. Because of its low
fertility and shad population, it’s become ideal
habitat for big shellcrackers.
To learn more about Lake Guntersville, go to http://www.outdooralabama.com/fishing/freshwater/where/reservoirs/guntersville/,
or, http://www.lakeguntersville.org/.
Tomorrow: Mississippi –
Tippah County Lake
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