Ontario Angling Hitlist Chapter 2: Precariously Perch(ed)

March 19, 2025

Ontario Angling Hitlist: Chapter 2

Precariously Perch(ed)

By: Logan E

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When I started my Ontario multi-species challenge I was excited at the prospect of re-visiting some old angling rivals, as well as chasing new-to-me species; one area that I was lacking enthusiasm was the pursuit of small species that require finesse presentations, but my first micro-pursuit proved me wrong in many ways- yellow perch provided me with an ice fishing experience that rivaled some of my best days on the water pursuing large predatory species.

The yellow perch is the underdog of the ecosystem in many ways, it is a keystone species in a majority of Canadian Shield lakes providing forage for larger piscivorous predators. Northern pike, walleye, lake trout, muskie, bowfin, channel catfish, gar and walleye will regularly consume yellow perch. The perch is a member of the same family as the walleye and sauger and shares the same defense mechanism as their cousins in the form of a spiny dorsal fin that it utilizes to prevent easy consumption by predatory fish. When agitated or defensive a perch can raise its dorsal spines that it uses to create a choking hazard for predators, because of these spines a predator must consume a perch head-first. Schooling behaviour is another defensive adaption that many prey fish utilize; when traveling in large schools it is harder to be singled out as an individual member and the undulating schooling movements can confuse and disorient a would-be predator. The yellow perch is one of the most accessible species of fish in Ontario especially for young anglers seeking to catch their first fish it is also very tasty.

In stark contrast to muskie fishing I knew that perch would require small presentations, less angler enacted movements, and less overall excitement (in my opinion); typically I like to fish hard and move lures quick looking for reactionary bites and I knew this would be lacking jigging for perch. I started my day out on the hard water with the initial aspirations of chasing cisco, lake trout, northern pike, or walleye (basically anything but perch!) The ice conditions turned out to be precarious, not dangerous, but not easily traversable either. With no snow-machine, quad, or power auger I had to rely on good old fashioned muscular grit to find a spot and drill my holes; 12-24 inches of slush directly below a fresh layer of snow made walking to far-off spots cumbersome. As I trekked further onto the lake the far-away haunts of larger, more exciting species looked less and less appealing, and that is when I decided to stay closer to the landing and chase shallow-water species instead. I proceeded to plug some holes shore-adjacent near a main lake point that I hoped would be a feeding hub for pike and walleye.

A beautiful Canadian Shield snow-scape made the trek worthwhile

After hand-bombing the initial holes I probed the water column utilizing my helix five on down-imaging mode. It was immediately apparent that there were fish near the bottom, because the lake has an abundant smelt population I assumed the clusters of marks were smelt. After probing the bottom with a drop-shot with a live minnow, the first of many perch revealed itself. I spent the rest of the day experimenting with different presentations finding that after pulling a perch or two out of the hole the school would get wise and stop attacking my lure. I used a drop shot with live bait, a few different jigging spoons, tungsten jigs with larva imitations, a soft plastic perch imitation, and a hair jig with all lures finding success. Once the perch became aware of my shenanigans I found long drops and quick vertical retrieves were much more effective at securing a bite; repetitive jigging lost its effectiveness, making the perch chase the bait proved fruitful.