How many is too many?

[12BHNTN]

Over the last several years there's been a lot of discussion regarding people catching and keeping too many perch out of Holter.  Without getting into the actual facts about perch biology and reproduction, I thought it would be interesting to get feedback on what everyone considers too many, and why it is too many.

For me and my wife, the no possession limit for perch on Holter is a wonderful thing.  Although I am proficient at putting deer and elk in the freezer, we much prefer walleye and perch and by freezing the fillets in water they keep perfectly in the chest freezer until thawed and eaten.

So how many is too many and why?

[Idahogator]

Too many is more than can be filleted immediately upon arriving at camp/home.       

[hoofer]

i keep enough perch for a few meals for my wife and i.why because i am going fishing again soon. it make me wonder with no limit on perch how many go in the trash.

[spoofhoundicefisher]

i agree idahogator.  don't catch what you can't clean when you get done.  thats part of the experience.  if you don't want to dress the fish after the fishing is over then don't keep them when you are catching them.  put them back in and let a kid catch them.

[Born Late]

...it make me wonder with no limit on perch how many go in the trash.

Same here...(and as I mentioned on the Holter page) along with how many fish get stuffed back into the hole in 30+ feet of water without using a descending device.  To me, each is wanton waste.

[montanaice]

seems like this is a recurring topic on the holter page i usually catch the limit then wait tell next time to limit out again. i usually limit out in the summer a few times too. but all the perch i catch i eat i never catch more then i can eat

[greener07]

12bhntn, thanks for posting this.  I go on the Holter page to check conditions and fishing reports, but seems like all it is lately is bantering back and forth about this topic.  A guy gets excited about catching a bunch of perch to feed his family and then gets ridiculed because he is going to deplete the perch population.  First of all, I rarely keep fish because I don't eat them.  I sometimes keep some for others though.  Secondly, I have no idea if keeping a bunch of fish is going to hurt the population but when I can go and catch a ton of fish in a couple of hours, I think there is probably a bunch of them down there.  And since it is not my expertise, I wont speak on the matter.  Also, when I drove up there last year I was going to release some but we were pulling them out of 50 fow and so I couldn't.  Since I didn't want to drive 5 hours round trip to fish for an hour and go home, I ended up keeping a limit because I was having a blast fishing and couldn't release them.  So, I took them home, cleaned them and fried up a few for my kids, and then gave them to people who were grateful to get them.  And from what it sounds, there are still a ton this year again.  (Hoping to get up there again soon and find out for myself.)  Now if people are wasting fish, then that's a different thing, but if people are keeping a limit of fish to eat, and they are doing it within the law, then so be it.

Does anyone know the history on the perch population in this lake, and how long the 50 perch limit has been in place?  If we knew that information, that might answer the question for us.

[grizzlyhackle]

Same here...(and as I mentioned on the Holter page) along with how many fish get stuffed back into the hole in 30+ feet of water without using a descending device. 

I think this is one of the biggest things a lot of anglers don't realize

[BloodShotP]

Last year there were literally thousands of perch stuck to the underside of the ice, it was sickening. Catch and Release doesn't work in some situations. I agree, keep the first 50 if you so choose, not pick through 200 for the biggest 50, while "releasing" 150 that will die. It was really disappointing to see so many healthy, not to mention tasty, perch stuck to the underside of the ice last year. Downright unethical to fish in 40+ FOW and try to release fish without a decompression device.

[greener07]

Do those decompression devices work without injuring the fish?  I didn't want to risk it, that why I just kept my first 50.

[Born Late]

I was referring to a descending device something like this: http://www.sheltonproducts.com/SFD.html   Most agencies and biologists advise against fizzing (i.e. popping a swim bladder with a needle) as a means of recompression.  Survival is far lower with fizzing than when using a descending device. 

Back to the original question, I don't have a problem with an angler keeping their legal daily limit provided they truly will use those fish and are making an effort to revive fish they aren't going to keep as part of their daily bag. But no possession limits?  Hmmmm...  I'm not sure that doesn't just encourage gluttony.

[BloodShotP]

Those descending devices do work, and don't injure the fish. It's just that the percentage of people who use them is about nil. They are kind of a pain and take time away from fishing, so most people don't bother. Hence the pile of fish stuck to the bottom of the ice around log gulch.

[BloodShotP]

And to be clear, there is a daily limit of 50 perch at Holter, it is an exception to the standard limitless perch rule. And generally, there is a reason when FWP implements a limit on a species in a body of water, when the species is unregulated in most. It is because they believe the fishery can be damaged by unregulated harvest.

[Oldbear]

Maybe the DNR has a high limit on them and wants people to take out a bunch to keep the quality and size up.  Just like bluegills over populated get stunted.  Apparently there is an abundance of them.

[207 in the 406]

I was referring to a descending device something like this: http://www.sheltonproducts.com/SFD.html

Thanks for that, BL! I'm gonna order one soon!

[esox_xtm]

Too many..... that is more than what you can use without having to give or throw away. Use it (all) for yourself, I never have an issue.

An occasional gift is OK, but to toss a resource because it went south before you could utilize it is a waste.

You asked, just my opinion.

[Born Late]

Thanks for that, BL! I'm gonna order one soon!

It wouldn't be too tough to fab something similar but I appreciate the guy's "No Floaters" passion and ordered a couple from him a couple of years ago.  I don't use the upper egg sinker on my rig since it's unlikely I'll be throwing back any perch that require that much weight to send back down!

[BloodShotP]

Oldbear, the fact that fwp implemented a special limit for holter indicates that the lake can't handle limitless harvest, which is the case for other lakes in the region. So exactly the opposite of what you said is true for Holter. The standard of no limit would apply if fwp felt there was an over abundance. They are limiting harvest to prevent damage to the fishery.

[Gone_fishing]

I'm new to ice fishing and haven't targeted perch before (ice or open water) but intend to in the future. A little embarrassed to say I was unaware that many will not survive being released after being pulled from deep water, but it does make sense. Learn something new everyday, glad i opened this discussion!

[Fishy Fishy]

Keep as many as you can fillet, I enjoy having big fish frys with friends.  Then again I eat fish a few times a week, got some perch chowder in the crockpot now.

[albo]

The limit for perch on Canyon Ferry (two dams up stream) is 10 and on Hauser the reservoir closest to Holster is also 10 with the exception on only one from April 1st to June 30th and it has to be over 14 inches. This chain of reservoirs on the Missouri River have had a declining perch population for years due to an increased predation by walleye, small mouth bass and northern pike. The limits have been placed on the perch to protect the population. If we as sports men and women don't follow the existing rules and also follow common sense practices and not try to release the smaller fish caught at the deeper parts of the reservoir we will see the current limit on Holster lowered. It was 35 a couple years ago.

[406hntfish]

Good discussion on releasing fish coming up from depth but what is everyones opinion on releasing fish when the air temperature is very cold. I was pulling trout out of 5-6 fow the other day when it was below zero with wind chill.  How long do I have to remove hook and release before fish freezes?

[curdog]

I have always wondered that myself I rarely set up the hut I would think those really cold days would be hard on a fish

[missoulafish]

  How long do I have to remove hook and release before fish freezes?

you will see their eyes freeze over and frozen fin tips....happens very fast. no time for a pic if its that cold.

[G fish]

I have been a part of the fill the bucket with jumbo perch when I was a kid fun to catch but when we got home and my dad had to clean all them well that is a different story, 10 is a meal 20 is a feast and any more well you must eat a lot.

[vicster]

It will be interesting to see what fwp does with the limit on perch as next year or two.  The huge year class is probably in it's last year and I havent heard if there are any big year classes behind them.  I imagine with all the mature spawners there have been plenty of eggs but with perch it seems like it's mostly weather dependent during the spawn whether or not you have a strong year class....  How much longer will it be able to sustain 50 fish limits with the pressure it's been seeing the last couple years?
And yeah, if your releasing perch from 30 foot or deeper it's no better than throwing them on the bank.  Keep em and eat em.

[Born Late]

It will be interesting to see what fwp does with the limit on perch as next year or two.  The huge year class is probably in it's last year and I havent heard if there are any big year classes behind them.

Yup. It's not often we're faced with large numbers of fish dying of old age but that's not far ahead of this particular perch age class.

[pmmpete]

You can get a Shelton descending device without charge at www.oceaned.org. 

[missoulafish]

Thanks for that info Pete:)

[Oldbear]

Oldbear, the fact that fwp implemented a special limit for holter indicates that the lake can't handle limitless harvest, which is the case for other lakes in the region. So exactly the opposite of what you said is true for Holter. The standard of no limit would apply if fwp felt there was an over abundance. They are limiting harvest to prevent damage to the fishery.

Gotcha.  Thanks.