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Yellow perch
Perca flavescens
Habitat requirements and life history:
The yellow perch is a native fish and a true perch that inhabits
nearly every river, lake and pond in Massachusetts. Yellow
perch are vary adaptable but are common in clear, open water
with moderate vegetation. They are generally intolerant of
pollutants and heavy siltation. They gather in like-size schools
and usually swim very close to the bottom. They feed on small
fish, insects, crustaceans and other invertebrates. Yellow
perch spawn in early spring, broadcasting their eggs in long,
gelatinous strands that adhere to aquatic vegetation or settle
to the bottom. (Sources:
Massachusetts Wildlife, No. 2, 2000, Special Fishing Issue
and Freshwater Fishes of the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland,
& Delaware)
Total length:
8 - 12 inches
Pollution tolerance (US EPA): Intermediate
tolerance
Classification:
Macrohabitat generalist
Number of fish found during 1954 &
2001 Fish Surveys*
| Location |
No. of Fish 1954 |
No. of Fish 2001 |
| Assabet River |
337 |
21 |
| Assabet Brook |
|
6 |
| Fort Meadow Brook |
4 |
|
| Nashoba Brook |
39 |
|
| Spencer Brook |
1 |
|
| Total |
381 |
27 |
*Data sources:
Schlotterbeck, L.C. and W.A. Tompkins, 1954. "A Fisheries
Investigation of the Merrimack and Ipswich River Drainages."
Bureau of Wildlife Research and Management, Massachusetts
Division of Fisheries and Game.
DFW, 2001. Assabet Watershed Fish Survey. MA Department of
Fisheries and Wildlife, Westborough, MA.
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