White bass problem

[Hammy]

Anyone seen anything like this? Posted from:

http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fis...-local-waters/

Posted October 28 2013 - 10:13 AM
About 15 years ago my club had a panfish tournament on our local lake and between my partner and I we brought in over 70 pounds of only white perch, average size 5-6". This year I've noticed a population explosion of WP with the largest average size up to 12".

WP are fun to catch - being of the bass family, they go after many bass lures , but after checking out their biology stats and checking with different state DNRs that have problems with them, I'm concerned for the other species in the lake. The reasons are as follows:

1. One female is capable of laying 300,000 eggs that are fertilized by many males. The eggs are dropped while the female swims and the eggs stick to vegetation - no nest for sunfish or WP to raid.

2. WP invade the nests of all species any time of year - this includes sport fish and forage species such as yellow perch, crappie and sunfish.

3. WP compete with all other species for forage which includes fingerlings of all other species and minnows as a usual part of their diet. The schools can hold over a thousand fish that sweep areas clean of forage that can be swallowed.

4. Once WP reach a certain size, they don't have enough large predators to control their population and they eat larger fish as they get bigger, not just fingerlings or fry.

One state, Kansas, recommends they never be released when caught and another state has seen the destruction of walleye populations due to WP over populations. My own local DEC fisheries biologist told me recently that WP were not native to one of our largest reservoirs and that the large population increase could be a problem for the native fish such as different species of trout, bass and walleye.

Fortunately I haven't heard too much on any site regarding WP, but having caught over 500 in all sizes this year, prompted me to report it to my fishing club which owns a launch on the lake. Hopefully the club will have a few targeted WP tournaments and restore balance. Otherwise, only larger bass will survive but only as long as their forage bases holds up to get that large.

[jad2t]

Originally Posted by Hammy

Anyone seen anything like this? Posted from:

http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fis...-local-waters/

Posted October 28 2013 - 10:13 AM
About 15 years ago my club had a panfish tournament on our local lake and between my partner and I we brought in over 70 pounds of only white perch, average size 5-6". This year I've noticed a population explosion of WP with the largest average size up to 12".

WP are fun to catch - being of the bass family, they go after many bass lures , but after checking out their biology stats and checking with different state DNRs that have problems with them, I'm concerned for the other species in the lake. The reasons are as follows:

1. One female is capable of laying 300,000 eggs that are fertilized by many males. The eggs are dropped while the female swims and the eggs stick to vegetation - no nest for sunfish or WP to raid.

2. WP invade the nests of all species any time of year - this includes sport fish and forage species such as yellow perch, crappie and sunfish.

3. WP compete with all other species for forage which includes fingerlings of all other species and minnows as a usual part of their diet. The schools can hold over a thousand fish that sweep areas clean of forage that can be swallowed.

4. Once WP reach a certain size, they don't have enough large predators to control their population and they eat larger fish as they get bigger, not just fingerlings or fry.

One state, Kansas, recommends they never be released when caught and another state has seen the destruction of walleye populations due to WP over populations. My own local DEC fisheries biologist told me recently that WP were not native to one of our largest reservoirs and that the large population increase could be a problem for the native fish such as different species of trout, bass and walleye.

Fortunately I haven't heard too much on any site regarding WP, but having caught over 500 in all sizes this year, prompted me to report it to my fishing club which owns a launch on the lake. Hopefully the club will have a few targeted WP tournaments and restore balance. Otherwise, only larger bass will survive but only as long as their forage bases holds up to get that large.

Solution is eat the white bass. They're delicious.

[Saltwaterwalt]

Kind of a confusing article due to not using the scientific name. The nickname "white perch" in most states generally refers to Freshwater Drum. White Bass, the correct name, are often called "stripes." But every state is different. In my home state of Michigan, I never knew a crappie was a crappie until I moved south. Locals up there called them "calico bass."

Either way, if they are talking about White Bass, well then I'm doing my share to help out. I eat the ones I catch. Rolled in Louisiana Cajun breading and deep fried ... they're great!

[TNBronzeback]

There are alot of similarities between White Perch and White Bass.
some of the great lakes were polluted with white perch back in the 80's, so much so the DNR instructed an immediate kill if caught. anyways, the 2 do look very very much alike but there are some slight differences in fin shape and coloration and body profile. Ive caught plenty of white bass here in TN and Michigan as well but i havent caught any white perch personally. Im not saying they arent here by no means, im just saying they do look alot alike.
We used to play White Perch Bucket Top Baseball with them up on Lake St. Clair. LOL....dad would lob one towards the back of the boat and we have a bucket top in hand and take a good whack at em. Tough little suckers, they would twitch for a minute on top then give us the fin and dart back to the bottom. LOL, good times!

[txnative]

White perch are members if the temperate/true bass (morone sp.) family, along with stripers, white bass, yellow bass, and their hybrids. They can have a cyclical pattern to their populations, which can explain the white perch problem from the article, along with the boom/bust of white bass on priest lake, center hill, dale hollow, etc. The temperate bass family tends to be more stable in river-run lakes due to an abundance of spawning sites in the tributaries and riverine sections of these types of lakes, though, which is why the Cumberland River system seems to maintain a healthy population of native species (whites and yellows). Stripers are the exception due to the fact that our lakes are not ideal for them to spawn successfully.

There is a lot of info on striper spawn studies available that are worth a look simply to determine where to fish for them during their spawning runs in the spring. Do some research on the web if you're interested in tying into a big cow striper...you may be surprised where they will be and even more pleasantly surprised by the fact that they feed aggressively during the spawn.


Chris Bryant

[TNtransplant08]

http://www.seagrant.umn.edu/exotics/wperch.html

[Hammy]

Thanks for all the info. Not sure what I learned.

Hammy

[Hammy]

2 good photos

whitebass.jpg

whiteperch.jpg

Hammy

[bd-]

I've never heard drum referred to as "white perch," but fish names vary so much from place to place that it gets really confusing.

The white perch referred to in the original article are almost certainly Morone americana. They're common up north but I've never seen one around here. They look kind of like a white bass without the stripes.

The white bass we have around here are a different fish - Morone chrysops.

[Hammy]

The white bass or sand bass is a freshwater fish of the temperate bass family Moronidae

250px-White_Bass.jpg

Hammy

added: Scientific name: Morone chrysops<li class="mod" style="clear:none">Rank: Species


<li class="mod" style="clear:none">Higher classification: Morone


Symbol of: Oklahoma

[tacklemake]

When I lived in Maryland I could catch 300 white perch on a good day using my feather spinner baits and when I moved here and found no white perch but white bass that looks like monster perch with stripes. This year I plan to eat the white bass that I catch...............woody

[txnative]

Originally Posted by tacklemake

When I lived in Maryland I could catch 300 white perch on a good day using my feather spinner baits and when I moved here and found no white perch but white bass that looks like monster perch with stripes. This year I plan to eat the white bass that I catch...............woody

Limit on white bass is 15...300 in the cooler will get you equal standing with the guys who kept over 400 last year

Joking aside, white bass are good eating, and, like white perch, finding one usually means you've found a bunch. Good luck with them.


Chris Bryant

[tacklemake]

White perch in Maryland has no limit............woody