SMB take over of perch spawning areas,

[cyclops2]

 

   Big Females in each area . I caught & released 2 well over 5 pound females.  Almost no perch or other fish in a 1 mile area. Should be hundreds.  This area is  close to the Bass Contest dumping / release area.

[Bluebasser86]

If there are smallmouth, there's other fish (a food source), nearby. Just because you don't see them, doesn't mean they aren't there. Perch are extremely prolific spawners, smallmouth aren't eating all of them. That's as lame of an excuse as the crappie guys here saying smallmouth are eating all their crappie. 

[cyclops2]

Today was a total  6 hour day at all the yearly places. No fish of any type except the 2 huge SMB I caught 2 days ago. Both bumped the lure. That was the total day. 

 

That filmy green slime is doing great. All the rocks are bare. No Zebra clumps on any of them.

 

It my be sewage to some people. But it is the sole food for weeds that have supported life here forever.

 

 No dead  fish are present or has been reported to the EPA.

[Sphynx]

Absence of proof hardly counts as proof of absence. Unless you end up with a bunch of dead smallmouth over the next month or two, my bet is that you have a reasonably healthy and not overpredated water body. If the smallies have munched all the perch etc, they'll start dying off until there is enough bait to support the current population again. My guess is that the perch have either moved to a new place, or simply aren't interested in feeding on whatever your offering, seems a bit premature and irrational to jump straight to the conclusion that the perch are all gone because a few trips failed to produce any when your fishing historical patterns rather than current conditions.

[cyclops2]

I sure hope it is a weather condition. But the NYS net trap people said they are finding a lot less fish of all types in the traps.   Water is 52 F  on surface at mid day deep or shallow areas.

[gim]

On 5/23/2022 at 4:01 PM, Bluebasser86 said:

If there are smallmouth, there's other fish (a food source), nearby. Just because you don't see them, doesn't mean they aren't there. Perch are extremely prolific spawners, smallmouth aren't eating all of them. That's as lame of an excuse as the crappie guys here saying smallmouth are eating all their crappie. 

This theory has existed on a big popular fishing lake here called Mille Lacs for years too.  Walleye and perch anglers love to blame other game fish for the problem, when in reality its the anglers themselves that are primarily to blame for over harvest.  The smallmouth population has increased there over the years because the water has cleared, and summer warm water is longer in duration, both of which are favoring smallmouth.  In fact, stomach content studies have shown that smallmouth here primarily eat crayfish.  Would they eat a perch given a chance?  Of course they would.

 

One moronic local state politician even declared "war" on muskies in Otter Tail County because he thought that muskies were eating up all the walleyes and crappies.  Which, ironically, are the very species of fish that are over harvested.  There is absolutely no scientific evidence for this type of theory and anyone who believes it is either completely stubborn or uneducated on the subject.