Yellow Perch Population Variability in South Dakota Glacial Lakes

Management of yellow perch Perca flavescens in South Dakota is often complicated by wide interpopulation variation in abundance, size structure, and growth.  Classification of populations into groups with similar population characteristics would substantially aid in effective management of yellow perch over a broad geographic area.  Accordingly, we classified 49 yellow perch populations into high- or low-quality population types and evaluated basic differences in biotic and abiotic variables between population types.  Specifically, populations were categorized based on indices of population size structure (proportional size distribution of quality- and preferred-length fish), growth (mean length-at-age-3), and body condition (relative weight) using a discriminant function analysis.  High-quality populations (N = 31) were characterized by larger size structure, faster growth, and greater relative weight.  Conversely, low-quality populations (N = 18) were characterized by smaller size structure, slower growth, and lower relative weight.  High-quality populations tended to occur in larger lakes with a greater abundance of potential predators, whereas low-quality populations typically occurred in smaller lakes with fewer potential predators and a greater abundance of potential competitors, suggesting that dissimilar yellow perch population types may arise from an interaction of lake morphometry and local biotic interactions.