Thanks for the recommendation, my fellow veteran. I suspect that if I can find some emerald shiners, they will be larger than what I consider a crappie minnow, which is about 2 inches long, so if I get the large shiners, I will cut them in half. Do the perch eat both sections of the minnow, or do they prefer the head and front part of the body? I perch fish in South Dakota, through the ice, and the perch there usually will not eat the tail section. Thanks again for your help.
Phil