Willard Perch

[straitliner]

A few years back we were going from wiper boil to wiper boil. My friends son tossed a curly tail in the middle of one and BAM! Thoughthe had a wiper but pulled out a 13 to 14 inch fat perch(guessing on size, we didn't measure). Have perch always been there or are they illegaly planted? I thought they maybe just came down from Pineview. How often are perch catch there. I fish there enough but have never seen another one caught. Just curious.

straitliner
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[fishinfool]

I'm sure they made it down from pineview. I have only caught one in four years so I don't think there are very many in there? Anyone else want to chime in on this.[fishin]
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]I have fished Willard since the 70's and do not recall seeing any perch until after they became established in Pineview. Pineview spills every few years, washing down ALL SPECIES...including tiger muskies, which have been caught in the Ogden River below the dam.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]There are quite a few perch in Willard, but like Utah Lake (also has perch) it is not prime habitat. Perch prefer deeper, cleaner and colder water. Nevertheless, they survive and hold their own. I caught several from the north marina one day in late fall while fishing for crappies and walleyes. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Most perch from Willard are caught in late fall or winter when they start schooling up in colder cleaner water or under the ice. And, although most perch caught from Willard are less than 10 inches long, there are more than a few caught in the 13 to 14 inch range every year. Not enough to launch a perch jerkin' expedition, but a pleasant surprise when you catch one.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]As I recall, DWR netting and stomach analysis surveys a couple of years ago revealed that walleyes included perch as a significant part of their diets during at least part of the year in Willard.[/#0000ff]
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[trophyboat]

i caught big fat 13"er on a crank bait last summer and a few through the ice 7 or 8 years ago but that is all i have ever seen. I think tubedude has it nailed, once again.
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[GottaBite]

I USED to fish Willard thru the ice ALOT...years ago...and would catch a mixed bag of wallys, crappie, wipers, and perch... MOSTLY perch. Then about 10-12 yrs ago....dang, it's been THAT long ago, maybe LONGER...they just seemed to "disappear". Ya couldn't "buy" one. I would normally fish in the mouth of the N harbor or around the S dock in the N harbor. There were perch EVERYWHERE, now none, or very few...just my 2 cents worth.
I remember it because that was back when you could ONLY use one pole and there were no second pole licences. I talked to someone one day ice fishing, telling them that where I was from (Kansas/Nebraska/Colorado) you could use 2 poles just BUYING a licence, and that Colorado had a 2 pole stamp. Told him of the revenue the state could generate, etc...He told me he was on the proclamation committee and he would bring it up...next yr we had 2 pole licences. We were catching ALOT of perch that day, him and I...now....very few?????? (wipers were newly introduced right about that time?[:/][shocked][cool][;)][smile])that's suspicious,unsure,shocked,cool,and a
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[Springbuck]

Once about 10 years ago, we went fishing for cats off the SW dyke corner and caught two smallmouth and a few really nice perch. I also saw a lot of crawdads in the rocks that day, something I hadn't seen before.
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[schfifty5iv]

haha funny thing was at utah lake by the docks in american fork fishing for white bass with my ultra light setup and didnt catch a single one but caught 6 perch lol [crazy]
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