DISTRIBUTION:
 These are fresh water species found from Nova Scotia to South Carolina. They are found in the Hudson Bay drainage, U.S and have been introduced in the western parts of the country. They are native to many other locales in the Northern Hemisphere. HABITS: The yellow perch is a fresh water poikilotherm that used to be found in abundance in Lake Erie. They are omnivorous feeders leaning more towards carnivorous. Small fish and insects compose a majority of their diet as they are formidable pelagic foragers. SPAWNING: Fish spawn in the spring when water temperatures reach 50 F. Eggs are contained within a gelatinous ribbon. A 0.5 lb female will produce 10,000-20,000 eggs. Eggs hatch in approximately two weeks at 53 F. Spawns may be obtained by stripping eggs from ripe females and mixing with milt from males in a dry container, mixed thoroughly and then water is added to activate the sperm and permit fertilization. GROWTH: These are relatively small fish growing to a maximum of 4 pounds. Average weight is about 1-2 pounds and can be marketed after 2-3 years of growth at 55-78 F. USES: Yellow Perch are valuable commercially for food and as a recreational forage fish. CULTURE: Ponds are usually stocked at 200,000-300,000 fry per acre for production of 3-5 inch fingerlings. Food fish are raised at 1,500-2,500 lbs. per acre. They are readily spawned in captivity and accept commercial feeds.
HANDLING TOLERANCE: The yellow Perch can be handled fairly roughly. They are a tough fish. However they do have their limits. Exposure to the atmosphere should be kept to a minimum. CROWD-ABILITY: Yellow Perch are carnivores as adults. They also exhibit cannibalistic behavior throughout their life. Therefore it is best for a yellow perch farmer to routinely grade and separate the yellow perch by size. These fish are also a schooling type of fish by nature, so they can be crowded into tight spaces. DISEASE RESISTANCE: The crowd-ability of these fish may also have a downfall. When one fish in a pond, raceway, or cage-culture for Yellow Perch gets sick, it is likely that several, if not all of the fish in the container will contract the disease. The fish come in contact with several of their cohorts throughout the day. Any disease or parasite present will then be exposed to several hosts. WATER QUALITY: The Yellow Perch requires high quality of water in order to stay disease free and grow well. Oxygen must remain high with low CO2 levels. The pH has to be in the range of 6 to 9. FEED CONVERSION RATIO: The Feed Conversion Ratio for Yellow Perch in an aquaculture setting is usually at a good level. This is due to the species need for high protein (32-40%). Their carnivorous nature doesn’t allow for growth using low protein feeds. REPRODUCTIVE CONTROL: For the most part Yellow Perch brood fish are captured from the wild. Some farmers get permits to harvest fertilized egg ribbons from the wild. In order to spawn yellow perch, brood stock can be kept either indoors or outdoors, but must be put in an environment that mimics seasonal changes. Each fish spawns only one time a year. This can be as early as January in the south, or as late as June in parts of Canada. Any variation in age, even by as few as 2 weeks will lead to variations in fry size and eventually cannibalism. Some farmers are treating this problem by using Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG), which synchronizes spawning in females. Also, females grow much faster than males. For that reason MT is used as the sex steroid testosterone, which causes males to become sex reversed. The sex-reversed males are then spawned with normal eggs and all of the fry that develop will be females. Since the fry that are produced were not exposed to chemicals, they are not labeled as hormone reared. The North Central Regional Aquaculture Center (NCRAC) is currently trying to get the FDA to approve the use of MT at yellow perch farms. MARKET-ABILITY: In the 1950’s and 60’s harvesting of yellow perch in the Great Lakes was at its peak. By the 1980’s and 90’s harvests were down to a quarter of what they used to be. It is believed that commercial harvest of yellow perch in the great lakes will never reach the level it was at in its prime. Yellow perch are sought after for the following reasons:
In 1980 the wholesale price for yellow perch fillets was between $6.50 and $9.00 per pound. By 2002 that price has gone up to between $9.00 and $15.00 per pound. 70% of the yellow perch sales in the US are within 50 miles of some part of the great lakes. REFERENCES:
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