white perch
Morone americana (Gmelin 1789)

Overview

Common names

white perch, silver perch, gray perch, blue-nose perch

Description

Usually 7-10 in. (17.8-25.4 cm). Color is grayish green, darker along the back with silvery, lightly mottled sides, a silvery-white belly, and bluish tint along lower jaw. Body shape is similar to native white bass, but deepest just ahead of the dorsal fin, tapering back toward the tail. Unlike native white bass, white perch have no dark lines running along the back and sides.

Habitat and Habits

White perch occupies brackish water in its native range along the Atlantic coast. It easily survives freshwater where it can form large populations. They generally found near shore and are an open-water species, showing little preference for any substrate type. White perch spawn in tributaries of larger water bodies.

Ecological Threat

White perch entered the lower Great Lakes in early 1950s through the Erie and Welland Canal systems and spread westward. They have also been spread by accidental inclusion in shipments for stocking other fish species to inland lakes and accidental bait bucket transfer. They feed heavily on the eggs and young of important game species, and have potential to cause declines in native species’ populations, both from egg predation and in competing with native fish for food and habitat and hybridizing with native white bass in western Lake Erie. White perch is a prohibited invasive species in several states.

Resources

• Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database - U.S. Geological Survey

Selected Images

Maps

Invasive Listing Sources

• Alberta Fisheries Act
• Invasive Species of Concern in Georgia
• Minnesota DNR invasive species list
• Ontario’s Invading Species Awareness Program Tracked Species List
• Pennsylvania's Field Guide to Aquatic Invasive Species
• Wisconsin's Invasive species rule – NR 40