Perch

[KPI]

What is your limit for size in western basin we are throwing back 7 1/2 or smaller what is your size limit i caught alot of 7 inchers today but threw them back,also who did not fish today because of the bait situation out west this morning .

[Capt Juls]

I would keep a 7 incher....I rate the sizes as a "Taco", "Sammich", or "Dinner"...dinner being a jumbo.

They just have to be big enough to go through the commercial scaler at Port Clinton Fish Co.

I prefer eating the smaller ones myself. In fact, tell me if I'm wrong here.... that when you're cooking up some fried perch and someone comes to talk to you in the kitchen...they always sneak a piece or two to "test"...which ones do they snatch up? Yep, it's the littlest ones.

Also, if a smaller fish is going to die because it swallowed the hook and damage is done trying to get it back...I keep it. Throwing it back is just going to feed the seagulls. Seagulls can eat the white perch I throw them. (I like seagulls)

Be gentle with the little ones....they are the future.

Saturday, there wasn't any live minnows available anywhere...but, luckily, I had made a minnow run earlier in the week, so I could freeze some. We used those, and they worked for us. I freeze mine in Wintergreen Rubbing Alcohol.

[Guzzy]

No minnows at Port Clinton Sunday 8/17. I managed to bring some up from Columbus but 1/3 died with my bubbler. Only a few head boats were out. Three of us managed to catch 25 before the rain started. NW of the restricted area.

[penalty box]

emeral shinners don't live very long. I used to use a bubbler they work ok but lately i take a small cooler with ice and have the bait shop dump on the ice works very well and easy to grab and cut and still very firm. I keep 7" and up KPI I like eating the smaller ones as well but its much more fun when you catch jumbos

[cooleyfarms]

we put a small plastic bottle of frozen water in our bubbler. shiners last for the whole trip and we freeze those left. we carry a spare in our ice chest.

[penalty box]

good idea using the frozen bottle, be carefull dumping ice in the bucket. If the water used to make ice has clorine in it like city water it will kill the minnows quickly

[Southern OH Percid angler]

Penalty box is right, be careful with ice. A bottle is better. A little bit of uniodized salt will help to. BE SURE IT'S NOT TABLE SALT BUT UNIODIZED, LIKE PICKLING SALT A half teaspoon in a bucket of water is good enough. It balances out electrolytes and reduces stress from lactic acid. Just a hint from an old biologist.

[airshot]

I clean my own Perch, so I choose to keep only those over 8" to make the cleaning chore worthwhile. On the occasion I get a gut hooked perch, I will keep those 7 inchers. Just to much work filleting those little buggars for the couple bites you get. Also, I use small bottles from drinking water that I freeze and add to my minnow bucket. I can keep emerald shiners all day in my aerated bucket with ice bottles. On really hot days, I bring along an extra gallon of my well water from home so I can change out the water in the minnow bucket to help.

[Fishcat]

I come from Grand Lake St Marys where all of my first 60 some years a bucket full of 10 and 11 inch crappies was a good day. Then the state put a 9 inch minimum on them and within a couple of years a good day has that same bucket full of 15 inch fish. Do you think something like a 7 or 8 inch minimum limit for perch would work on Lake Erie to improve the average size of perch? When I go to a cleaners around Lake Erie, I am amazed at the perch being cleaned. You have all seen it, really small perch being cleaned.

[itsbob]

The commercial netters minimum size to keep is 8.5".You are correct on the small perch I see being kept I would think a minimum size for sport fisherman would help in the long run.Give them a chance to get to breeding age.