Why do some Perch grow to be Jumbos?

[HighLife100]

Does anyone know why certain lakes can consistently grow Jumbo Perch and other lakes you can't find 1 over 6"? Do you think these are different species of Perch or just conditions caused by lack of forage in some lakes?

[Dano2]

some lakes they dont get the chance to get very big because the bigger fish eat them.
Someone will be along to explain this in more detail soon I'm sure, I'm just not much of a detail person, HEH!

[Matt Johnson]

A lot of it has to do with forage and lake type. Certain lakes just won't produce jumbos. Some lakes produce jumbos rather quickly, and other take time to produce jumbos and the jumbos are few and far between. Lakes like Mille Lacs go through different seasons where perch hatches play the key role. Solid perch hatches can mean both a change in walleyes and perch, same goes for years with weak perch hatches. Insects, minnows, algae, blood worms...these are just a few entrees that perch feed on. I've found that lakes rich in freshwater shrimp and bloodworms seem to produce jumbos religiously, year after year. Minnow diets and insects can see varying years where perch grow to be true jumbos, and sometimes there aren't any patterns to the size of the perch. And, just like some lakes experience stunted panfish, some lakes will experience stunted perch, these are your lakes where all the perch are 3-6 inchers...pike snacks! Sure, your good jumbo lakes have their fair share of pike snacks, but some of those perch are just on their way to becoming jumbos. I also believe that lake type plays a key role as well. Lakes with a large variety of bottom contour and rapidly changing transition areas (mud to rock, weed/sand, etc) seem to be good perch lakes. Large mud flats are excellent as well. Some people say that the size of the lake also determines the size of the perch, but I don't always find that to be true. I know of several lakes that are less than 1,000 acres that pump out jumbos. Predators also play a role in jumbos. When it comes to predators, the larger lakes are more than likely the ones that produce the jumbos. Larger lakes mean more area, and even though some of these lakes (Winni, Mille Lacs, Cass...) are full of predators, the massive amount of area makes up for feeding predators. Most studies done on perch involve predators like walleye, pike, muskies, other perch, and fishermen. So if I had to some up the characteristics of why a lake produces jumbos, it would go something like this...

1) Forage
2) Predators
3) Lake Type
4) Lake Size

Some of these are just assumptions and from past experience/reading/etc. I'm interested to read other responses.

I did a college paper on Mille Lacs Lake Perch and predator-prey relations, I'll try and find the disc I saved it on and relay some info I found about the perch out there, pretty cool stuff.

Good Fishin,
Matt Johnson

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[This message has been edited by Matt Johnson (edited 07-30-2004).]

[musky hunter]

I think the forage base has a lot to do with it, and fishing pressure. I fished on Winnie years ago (1960-1970) and you couldn't believe the incredible perch fishing, we caught jumbos left and right. This is before winter perch fishing became the rage. But now the pressure on Winnie has depleted the jumbo stocks, although there still are plenty of perch, it's harder to find a jumbo.

[Chris Haley]

Albeit, forage is key. I think genetics is an equally major contributor.

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[HighLife100]

It would be interesting to see if Perch from Winnie or Mille Lacs could be stocked in a lake that did not have Jumbos to see if they would grow to Jumbo size. If something like that worked then it could releave some of the fishing pressure on walleyes.

[HighLife100]

I have always wondered how much genetics plays a role in Perch size. Seems like you can go to Winnie and catch a mess of 9 - 10" Perch then another lake you won't catch nearly as many but they can be up to 13" or more. Then there are the Pike bait lakes...

[Flash King]

food supply is a definite advantage, but I fish a pond that is less than 30 acres that constantly produces perch over 13" and very few small perch are caught - maybe genetics do have something to do with it!

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[Lost]

I saw a report or read an article about this at one time. Can't remember where. I think it was In-Fisherman or something. If I find it, I'll let you know what it says.

[CRANKBIT]

Devil's Lake was initially stocked with stunted perch. An abundance of high protein forage (freshwater shrimp) is a major factor.

[duck2]

Matt Johnson,
I appreciated your detailed observations on the dynamics of jumbo perch propagation. My hardwater forays in the NE Metro ( White Bear / Bald Eagle) seldom produce sizeable perch. Any suggestions on a lake in the NE Metro area that holds the possibility of sizeable perca flavescens?
Thanks

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[Matt Johnson]

duck2,
Thats a tough one, not many Metro lakes, if any, will consistantly produce nice/jumbo perch. There have been periods/seasons where certain lakes have actually given up quite a few nice fish, but those periods are short lived. I wish I could tell you a lake somewhere in the Metro where we can go out and see quantity and quality catches of perch, but I always find myself heading up to Lake Winnibigoshish, Cass Lake, Mille Lacs, etc...For some reason it seems that Metro lakes lack the characteristics of producing true jumbo perch, can the Metro lakes sustain jumbo perch...of course, but something is missing, and perch are mostly stunted. There are several other lakes across the state very similar to the Metro area lakes, and they are blooming with jumbo perch, why that is, I don't know.

So to answer your question, there are no real "perch" lakes in the Metro. You might stumble across a couple here or there, but a consistant bite of fish 10 inches or largers is tough in the Metro.

Good Fishin,
Matt Johnson

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[EBass]

Just putting in my .02 because I'm killing some time here. I think it's genetics.

A large ma and pa will make other large ma and pa fry which are larger, stronger and just have the DNA makeup to become JUMBO. It's just like people.

Once that large jean trait is gone, well you know, stunted fish.

This is why it's important to release the bigguns reguardless of species.

I wonder what would happen if Kareem Abdul had a child with a midget ma? Things that make you say, hmmmmm.

Again, this is what I think I have no proof.

[MedicineMan]

I sent this thread to a couple of guys I know in the DNR and this a one of the responces I got:

"The answer given by Matt Johnson is very good and I don't have much else to add to it. Many things are needed in order to make jumbo perch: forage, predators, lake habitat and yes genetics can play a role. However, with genetics one must also remember that an organism can have all of the genetics needed but if resources are lacking the organism
cannot reach its full potential (sort of the difference between genotype and phenotype if you remember your genetics lingo from school). It seems that in order for jumbo perch to be consistently produced, all of
these things must come together. I hope this gives you some ideas to toss around."

A talked to another buddy of mine in the DNR after the game sunday. He basically said that Matt did a pretty good job summarizing the major factors when it comes to growing jumbos. But he did get A LOT more ******** when it came to those factors. I'm not one for long posts so I'm not going to go ******** like he did. But there was one factor that he told me that no one has mentioned. Weather. Weather is a huge factor when it comes to lakes. Think of water levels, (aglae bloom, weedgrowth, water clarity), water temps, etc.... These are a few things that the weather plays a part in.