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In November of 2006 Raymond Martin of Elmira, NY and Dave Criss from Pine City, NY were enjoying an exciting day of perch fishing on Irondequoit Bay. They were fishing with Captain Chas Townsend of Searcher Charters. The fish were hitting on perch minnows fished on the bottom in 20 feet of water. Redworms and wax worms were also used to entice a few fish.
Irondequoit Bay is a large bay on the southern shore of Lake Ontario located in Rochester, New York. The Bay is four miles long and approximately 1/2 mile wide. The maxium depth of the Bay is just under 75 feet. Irondequoit Bay offers fishing for perch, bluegill, bullhead, carp, trout, walleye, northern pike and largemouth bass. The bay itself can be a nice diversion on the days when Lake Ontario is too rough to venture out into.
Yellow Perch are found in most all of New York's lakes and rivers. In recent years the perch populations have seen radical changes. In some waters they have become scarce and others they are thriving. This is caused by a wide variety of factors including drought, acid rains, and introduction of exotic species. Perch are a highly sought after game fish in early spring and are the bread and butter for ice fisherman. Perch average about 6 to 14 inches in length with most being in the 10 inch area. Recently N.Y. State instituted a 50 fish limit for perch which should help stop over harvesting. The state record Yellow Perch weighed 3 lb. 8oz. This fish was caught by George Boice on a perch minnow from Lake Erie in April 1982.
The Yellow Perch will feed on a variety of items including small minnows, insects, crayfish, worms, eggs and the small fry of other fish. Perch prefer deeper water with cover or drop offs and will congregate on the deeper side off weed beds. Pier pilings and brush also attract and hold these fish as well. Perch also provide a forage base for larger fish such as pickerel, walleye, northern pike and muskellunge.This is one reason cover is a must for perch. When the water temperatures are to warm perch will leave the cover and seek deep open water and roam the lake in large schools where they find safety in numbers.
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