Yellow Perch In Bull Shoals?

[fishinmachine]

Headed for BS in late July with extended family, will be staying near Oakland area. We'll be fishing and a couple of us may do a scuba dive or two. I know that Bull Shoals has a healthy walleye population and I hear that a few yellow perch turn up from time to time on the end of a line. Were they accidentally stocked along with walleye fingerlings? Does anyone know if it is possible to catch the yellow perch regularly? I'd like to show my kids what they look like....caught them years ago during summers in Minnesota with my grandfather(who started a lifetime love of angling for me).

FM

[Dutch]

I catch a few on the upper end from time to time but not on a regular basis. One of the MDC fisheries biologists said they have been there for many many years and not recently stocked.

[bigdub]

I have caught 2 in the Pothole on seperate occasions both were pretty sizeable and both released, but thats it and it was totally by accident. Not sure if there is aa healthy enough population to waste time fishing specifically for them, but i know there are at least 2 LOL!!! Good Luck!

[Phil Lilley]

I'll tell my story again.

May be 10 years ago, may be more, I was fishing the K Dock area where I caught a Yellow Perch. Really wasn't 100% sure it was a YP since I'd never seen one in real life but it sure wasn't anything like what I had caught in the Midwest before.

I kept it alive, got home and called my buddies in Springfield at MDC and asked, "Are there YP in Bull Shoals?" They said No Way! I said I had one, they said No Way! I took it to the hatchery where they put it in one of their tanks. The fishery biologist came down and verified it was a Yellow Perch. It was the first confirmed Yellow Perch from Bull Shoals, at least by MDC.

They kept in their aquarium for almost a year.

Vince's state record perch should be transferred to Bass Pro's tank at the Landing here anytime for public display.

[abbfish]

I saw at least a half dozen when I was snorkeling around a cove 2 weeks ago.

[Dutch]

Francis Fleetwood caught some over 20 years ago at Beaver Creek. Only one guy who was from Wisconsin even had a clue as to what it was.

When the white bass population went way down, one could get about a 1/2 dozen of them each day in the Cedar Creek area.

[Phil Lilley]

The guys at MDC probably hadn't heard of any- in that office anyhow. You're right- they probably been in the lake for many years.

[Dutch]

Phil, the MDC biologist that I talked with way back when, said that they were in the river when the lake was dammed up. That was several years ago and I for the life of me can't remember his name.

[fishinmachine]

State record perch?????? I guess I'm out of the loop, guys. Texas is a long way from the Ozarks. What's the story with a state record perch and where is the BPS tank to which Phil refers?

Here in Texas, all members of the sunfish family are incorrectly labeled as "perch"....but the species I am interested in is not a member of the sunfish family. Perca flavescens is a true perch and closely related to the walleye and sauger and to stream darters. Just want to make sure we are discussing the same critter.

Yellow Perch

Thanks for your responses, folks. We are truly excited about returning to the Big Bull after many years away.

FM

[thunderbutt]

i got one pan fishing with a road runner last fall from shore. at the dam site boat ramp in bull shoals ,ar . can't fish any lower in the lake than that. i have taken perch fishing lake michigan as a kid in the late 60's it surprised me when i hooked it. did not know they were this far south. but then if walleye are then the yellow perch is a member of the walleye family. it was no jumbo perch it was an honest 8"