Craw Colors

[j.bruno]

Hey i was wondering, what craw colors work the best in which seasons?

[MuffinMan]

It depends more upon water color that anything else. But a great all around color for me is any shade of green.

[dhami013]

I would try to find out what color the craws are in your body of water. They vary among states. And waters. But I go with what the water color is as well. For instance black and blue or green pumpkin for the murky water around here.

[flippin and pitchin]

There are over 200 species of crayfish in north America. They each change color during the course of their active season. Check with with a local biologist what you have in your region. That should give you a good starting point.

[ww2farmer]

It dosen't really matter. Greenpumpkin, and black/blue flake will work. I have seen craws out of my home lake vary in color, from almost all black, a light almost translucent brown, dark rusty brown, bright lobster red, greenpumpkin with orange claw tips, and probably more I can't remember. When I saw the green craws with the orange claw tips, I dipped the tip of my jig trailers in orange dye to match.......It didn't get me any more bites than I was getting with just a plain green pumpkin trailer. I am not a huge believer in "match the hatch" ,I am a believer in putting a good presentation in front of an active fish.

[Bass_Fanatic]

Keep it simple. Greenpumpkin, wtml/red, black n blue, falcon lake craw.

[BobP]

If you really want to "match the hatch" you need to turn over a few rocks in your lake. If you search on Google, many state universities have catalogs of craw species pics. Most of the year, in most lakes, most of the craw species will be a shade of brown.

[msolorio]

i try to stick with green pumpkin and or watermelon colors, never failed me but, but i have thrown a pearl, sapphire blue and bama bug colored craw with great success. the craws in my area (fresno ca) usually are red with a black/brown/green pumpkin colored backs so i try to match that but honestly, u dont necessarily have to match the hatch. bama bug has been my go to color all summer and still now in clear and dirty water.

[BassThumb]

I always pay attention to anything sticking out of a fishes gullet. Sometimes, you get lucky and get some hints as to what color and type of forage the fish are feeding on. I see panfish tails all the tail in particular with largemouth, but smallies like to spit up crawfish pieces.

[Jigfishn10]

"Ask not what a craw color can do for you, but what you could do for your craw color."

Pick colors that will be most visible under water in relation to your fishing conditions. Make it visible and present it properly and the rest will hook into place.

[Catt]

FYI

Color expression in crawfish is regulated largely by special pigment containing cells (chromatophores) located beneath the exoskeleton, and color is normally a function of two factors, developmental stage and the environment. Most crawfish species are generally greenish or brownish as immature animals and begin to take on the characteristic colors as the approach maturity. Color manifestations is intensified in sexually mature individuals. The aquatic environment and diet also influence color.

Individual specimens of crawfish vary in color from the normal population. Color variants are almost endless with respect to degree and/or pattern of expression.

Molting is the periodic shedding of the old exoskeleton (shell) and takes place with each increase in size which can be 4-6 times a year; once the crawfish reaches maturity the molting process stops

Each individual crawfish will vary in color before, during, & after molting!

Knowing the current color of live crawfish in a particular body of water does not mean a bass will eat a crawfish lure of the same color; the bass may want something totally opposite.

[Colton Neal]

Don't know much but some crawfish are different colors depending on what part of the country its in.

But i just go with browns, grays, and reds. Thats it.