GreatLakesNow just posted a pretty interesting article on the difficulties of catching yellow perch in Lake Erie.
Yellow Perch, Emerald Shiners: Diet change might have led to drop in fish catches – Great Lakes Now
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GreatLakesNow just posted a pretty interesting article on the difficulties of catching yellow perch in Lake Erie.
Yellow Perch, Emerald Shiners: Diet change might have led to drop in fish catches – Great Lakes Now
Nice article on perch,thanks.
If the government says the fish are there and fishermen are not catching them, are they really there?? Interesting!!
That was a great article. For those that don't have the time to read it, the author says:
-Western Basin walleye diet is 58% gizzard shad
-Western Basin wally diet is 2% yellow perch
-Yellow perch diet used to eat about 50% fish and 50% invertedbrates
-Yellow perch now eat 80% invertebrates IE Mayflies, water fleas, and midges.
Bruce
I’m not buying this one.
Eyezcrazy
That is what I was trying to say!!!!
I'm from the Saginaw bay area, by what I've seen in the last several years it is definitely not a bait preference change, it is a lack of perch. Just look at the commercial guys and their declining catches.
I for sure am no expert, but what I've heard as far as commercial fishing decline does coincide with the article and the issue (I've heard) is not finding the fish, but the fish are scattered through the water column as opposed to being mainly on or near bottom where we are use to catching them and that is also where the nets are. I am not sure if this is all true or even any of it for that matter, but if it is it would make sense as to why the netters aren't doing well.
I’m not buying into a couple of things. Like only 2% of walleye diet is yellow perch and also the perch diet change is causing the low catch rates. My thought is the walleye are eating more perch than they want us to believe and with the large walleye population the perch numbers are down and those that are around are looking for safe areas to stay.
In other words - the perch just aren’t there.