All the information you’ll find in this article will provide you with everything there’s to know about fishing perch. It won’t matter whether you are just starting out or if you have already been perch fishing for decades. Our perch fishing tips and tricks can help you make an even better perch angler.
Before we get into the yellow perch fishing secrets and perch fishing setup of seasoned anglers, let’s first look into the species itself.
What is Perch?
Perch is commonly referred to as yellow perch and it pertains to various species of fish such as yellow perch or perca flavescens; balkhash perch or perca schrenkii; and European perch or perca fluviatilis.
All of them are freshwater, carnivorous fish, and they’re mostly found in ponds, rivers, streams, and lakes. Their diet consists of small fish, shellfish or crayfish, and aquatic insects (depending on the fish’s size). Perch are very popular among anglers.
There are also many fish that resemble perch, but are still called perch even when they’re members of a different breed. Perch tend to be active from dusk to dawn when feeding and they swim in schools.
You can identify yellow perch with their brass-colored bodies with triangular-shaped bars in the color of green-olive running along their bodies vertically. Yellow perch are among the common panfish within the US.
They’re able to live up to a decade and reach up to 11 inches in length. Perch that are bigger than the average may be referred to as jack perch or jumbos.
The record catch is over 140 years in existence and it is still the longest fishing record for freshwater species standing up to today. The reason the record is old may be attributed to fishing pressure, pollution, and other factors.
Perch Fishing Tips and Tricks
The majority of the tips you will find below are specific to yellow perch found in North America, in particular, but they can work for all other species of perch.
Go Light
You won’t be getting or feeling bites of perch without a light line, small terminal tackle, and a sensitive rod.
Nothing is more crucial than getting a lightweight power fishing rod. You can fish the same exact tackle as you would for crappie with perch fishing, but the hooks can be different.
Monofilament will work just fine, but as soon as you notice you are losing floats or hooks, opt for a braided line that has a heavier weight. There’s only one issue with braided lines and that would be the reduced abrasion resistance. Braided lines are also a bit tougher.
Just remember that you would want to have the most sensitive and lightest fishing line and rod. Have your sensitive fishing tools ready; otherwise, you’ll miss a lot of opportunities.
Focus on Your Rigs and Hooks
An article about perch fishing tips would be incomplete without reminding you to pay close attention to the rigs and hooks that you use.
Perch have smaller mouths compared to crappie. What does this mean? They’re tougher to hook and catch! What you want is for you to use smaller hooks around sizes 6 and 8.
In addition, a spreader rig will work well. But, you should steer clear from the ones that are used for crappie. What’s even better is a bullet weights rig, most especially when you’re working the bottom.
Get the Slip Floats Ready
If you can just have one tackle for perch fishing, we suggest it to be the slip float as it’s essential for perch. You shouldn’t be leaving home without this.
This particular kind of float can ensure a more accurate casting. Also, it can help or facilitate your accuracy in terms of depth control. So, whenever you are able to get premium slip floats, go for it!
If you’re looking to land several yellow perch, remember that these bad boys are of the same size and weight as crappie. This means you can do away with floats for crappie fishing.
Now, here is something that you have to note: a braided line and a slip float don’t mix together. A braided line wreaks havoc on an insert, which is why you’ll be better off using a monofilament line.
Conclusion
If you’ve already tried catching perch, then you know very well these perch fishing tips are useful. Catching a perch is an exciting experience.
Whether it’s your very first time or you’ve already done it many times in the past, remember the aforementioned tips as they’ll come in handy when you get out on the water.
Just one more crucial thing to remember before you leave: as soon as the summer begins, you’ll find perch fishing becomes more challenging.
This is because they like going deep into the water when the temperature rises. In such a case, use a wireless fish finder or an ice fishing flasher, so you can locate them easily.
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