White Bass or White Perch -- Which is it???
Well the weather didn’t cooperate with me today. I was planning to fish Harris again today but when I woke up this morning it was raining and the weatherman was talking more was coming with big wind later in the day. I thought it might be a good day to put a question to the Crappie.com forum for discussion or debate.
I am a very social-sort of fisherman and I love to talk to others who are plying their favorite fishing spots and (of course) the conversation always starts something like this: “What did you catch today?” or “Are you doin’ any good?” or “Are you having any luck?” which, as you know, are all questions that are aimed to get others to talk and tell you how they have done that day.
Almost every single time other fishermen will say something like: “I’ve caught 20some or 30some crappie -- (whatever the number might be) -- and about a half dozen white perch” or they might follow-up with the statement, “I can’t seem to catch any crappie because of those damned white perch”.
I have been fishing Jordan & Harris Lakes here in Central North Carolina for many years now and there is one issue that keeps coming up between me and other fishermen – especially in the fall and winter months and that issue is: White Bass or White Perch?
You know what I am talking about – those silver white small-mouthed fish that you catch while crappie or bass fishing that bristle their fins and flare their razor-like gill plates when landed and can inflict serious pain and bleeding if you don’t handle them carefully. They seem to range in size (in this area) from a quarter of a pound to around four pounds; they are fun to catch and are quite aggressive scrappers especially when you catch them on light tackle such as most of us use while crappie fishing.
But, you continually hear most area fisherman refer to these fish as white perch.
O.K. Crappie.com forum – This issue is in your hands to decide. Are these White Perch or White Bass? Please tell us all about your opinion and your experiences with these fish and whether or not you keep them to eat and how you prepare them and/or your recipes.
Last edited by Special K; 10-26-2010 at 11:15 AM.
Reason: Just because
"Just Like Iron Sharpens Iron... So it is that One Man Sharpens Another Man." Proverbs 27:17