Extrinsic Influences on Yellow Perch

Yellow perch Perca flavescens is a popular recreational species that provides commercial fisheries in many waters and aquaculture interests in yellow perch continue to increase.  Variability in life history traits of yellow perch have been identified in the literature, particularly those related to growth, and stunted individuals dominate in many populations of yellow perch across their range. Most studies evaluating the determinants of growth in yellow perch populations are limited in geographic scope, examining only populations in relatively close proximity, and relationships in yellow perch populations detected at fine scales are often not significant when expanded to more coarse scales.  The objective of this study is to examine a host of physicochemical and biotic characteristics of natural lakes that influence yellow perch growth rates across their range.  Extant data on yellow perch population characteristics are currently being collected.  Preliminary analysis of data collected for South Dakota and Nebraska lakes demonstrate that yellow perch growth is positively related to surface area (r = 0.50; p < 0.01), mean water depth (r = 0.46; p < 0.01), and walleye catch per unit effort (r = 0.30; p = 0.04) but negatively related to shoreline development index (r = -0.25; p < 0.09), yellow perch catch per unit effort (r = -0.33; p < 0.01), and sunfish Lepomis spp. catch per unit effort (r = -0.45; p < 0.01).  Understanding the influence of environment on yellow perch populations could be useful for the management of the species for recreational purposes or predicting the effects of environmental changes on perch populations across their range.