How to recognise it
- Long and slender, with two separate dorsal fins, a forked tail, and large teeth in the jaws and on the roof of the mouth.
- Yellowish or olive-brown back with darker mottling and a white belly. A large black blotch at the rear of the first dorsal fin, and a white spot at the bottom of the tail.
- Its eyes reflect light, which helps it feed at night and in murky water.
- A yellow perch is a relative, but has regular dark bars down its sides and no large teeth.
- Usually 12–28 in and up to about 8 lb; larger ones are caught.
Habitat: where it lives
- Open water of deep, clear lakes and reservoirs, and pools of large rivers, often over rock or gravel.
- In rivers, look in pools 12 ft or deeper where boulders or sunken logs break up the bottom.
Habits: behavior, spawning and growth
- Stays deep by day and moves shallower at night. Dawn and dusk are its classic feeding times, when it comes up onto shallow flats after schools of minnows.
- Spring: near shore, especially on big sand flats. As the season goes on it moves to mid-lake humps, saddles and points, and deeper as the water warms. Late summer into fall, many come back toward the shoreline.
- One of the first fish to spawn in spring, once the water passes 46°F, on gravel in tributaries or on rocky points and dam faces in reservoirs.
Where and when
- May and June are the best months in Minnesota, when fish are shallow and near shore. Further south, spring comes earlier.
- Fish at first and last light: morning and late day in spring, at night in summer.
- In fall, troll near shallow weedlines, gravel bars and points.
- A bobber over rocky reefs and humps works through the year.
- Seasons differ by state and by water: check your state's rules before you go.
Bait and lures
Live and natural bait
- Shiner or fathead minnows
- Nightcrawlers
- Leeches
Lures
- Jigs, 1/8–3/8 oz: just heavy enough to feel the bottom, in dark and bright colors
- Rubber twister tails on a jig
- Small crankbaits shaped like perch or minnows (No. 5 and No. 7 are popular sizes)
- Spinners
Why these baits work
- Adults eat mostly fish, so a minnow, or a crankbait shaped like one, looks like what it hunts.
- It feeds near the bottom, so a nightcrawler or leech on a slip-sinker rig stays where it's looking.
- It sees well in low light and murky water, so try both dark and bright jigs until one works.
Rod and reel setups
Grouped by lure fishing (artificial baits) and bait fishing (live or natural bait).
Lure fishing
- Rod
- Medium-action spinning rod
- Reel
- Spinning reel
- Line
- 6–10 lb monofilament or braid
- Hook & rig
- A small hard crankbait (No. 5 or No. 7) trolled at about 1 mph, or just fast enough to make it wobble.
Bait fishing
- Rod
- Medium-action spinning rod
- Reel
- Spinning reel
- Line
- 6–10 lb monofilament or braid; on braid, tie on a length of clear monofilament as a leader
- Hook & rig
- A 1/8, 1/4 or 3/8 oz ball-head jig, heavy enough to feel the bottom, tipped with a shiner or fathead minnow.
- Rod
- Medium-action spinning rod
- Reel
- Spinning reel
- Line
- 6–10 lb monofilament or braid
- Hook & rig
- A slip-sinker rig with a size 4 to 3/0 hook and a minnow, nightcrawler or leech. When a fish takes it, let line run for several seconds, reel until tight, then set the hook.
- Rod
- Medium-action spinning rod
- Reel
- Spinning reel
- Line
- 6–10 lb monofilament or braid
- Hook & rig
- A slip bobber with a minnow, nightcrawler or leech. It slides on the line, so you can still cast easily with the bait set 20 ft down or deeper.
Tips
- Bring a net and pliers: its teeth are sharp.
On the table: cleaning and cooking
- Firm, tender and among the best-tasting freshwater fish.
Step-by-step cleaning, keeping fish fresh and eating safely are in the handbook.
Size and bag limits vary by state, species and lake. Current limits: Texas (TPWD); elsewhere, your state's fish and wildlife agency. Check before you keep a fish.
Sources
