Identification

Body Shape: Elongated, oval body, typically taller than thick.
Average size: 10 to 25 cm (50 to 200 g).

Coloring: Very characteristic. Back varying from dark green to golden brown and passing to yellow-green on the sides; extension of the coloring of the back on the sides in 7 wide vertical bands; Shiny orange pelvic and anal fins.

Characteristic external features: Two distinctly separate dorsal fins, the first spiny (13-15 spines) and the second soft-rayed; small and numerous teeth; two thorns on the anal fin; short thorn at the end of the operculum.

Habitat

Clear water, generally shallow (<9 m), cool (19 to 21oC), with moderate vegetation and with a muddy to sandy and gravelly bottom. Open areas of large lakes, ponds, slow-flowing rivers, and occasionally brackish water.
Food

The yellow perch is gregarious and feeds mainly at dusk. In winter, it remains active and feeds under the ice. The diet of yellow perch is varied and consists of aquatic insects, crayfish and other invertebrates, small fish, and fish eggs.

Reproduction

Season: Spring, mid-April to early May.
Type of spawning ground: Shallow water, usually near rooted vegetation, submerged branches, or dead trees, sometimes on sand or gravel.

Mode: On average, the male reproduces for the first time at 3 years old and the female at 4 years old. Spawning takes place at night and early in the morning. No nest is built. The transparent eggs, 3.5 mm in diameter, are released in a very long gelatinous string that folds up and attaches to vegetation or debris. This mass contains on average 23,000 eggs. This number varies from 2,000 to 90,000 depending on the size of the female. The eggs hatch after ten days.