To Catch a Perch is to Catch a Walleye?

By: Matt Johnson

Concept: Do walleyes and perch really go hand-in-hand? Using the expansive Devils Lake I talked with Jason Mitchell about the relationship between walleyes and perch and the demands of his aggressive, teamwork-driven lifestyle.

It’s no surprise that walleyes and perch are so much alike. I mean, they are practically built the same and run in the same family. Walleyes like minnows, perch like minnows. Walleyes roam the flats perch roam the flats. Walleyes school up perch school up. It’s simple, isn’t it? It’s so simple that some days we catch both out of the same hole. Walleyes and perch are indeed similar in nature, but just why do these two species act so much alike? Or, are they as alike as we sometimes think they are?

In our search for the Holy Grail– OK, in our search for the relationships between walleyes and perch– who better than Ice Team’s very own Jason Mitchell to help us answer that question?

Jason is not only a vital part of Ice Team; he is also part of the backbone of the famous Perch Patrol found across the mighty Devils Lake. Perch and walleye are Jason’s forte and he’s spent a lot of time chasing them both across the ice belt. Now it’s time to delve into the reasons why walleyes and perch go hand-in-hand.

“On Devils Lake, our perch are very basin oriented,” he begins. “As a general rule, we find larger schools of fish in deeper water that is associated with the transitions of the larger basins. I believe these fish roam these flats because they are safer from predators (Devils Lake has a high population of northern pike and walleye). We do find fish shallow at times relating especially to the flooded timber but the schools are much smaller, aggressive and never stop moving.

“We do find walleyes mixed with the perch at times…. a few scenarios include the shallow timber, deeper rock piles and deep structure but note that some differences exist. For example, the perch out here can be found on rocks at times but they do seem to avoid really large rocks where as the walleyes seem to be more prone to use the larger rocks on the rock pile. The perch seem to roam more so along the edges and where the rocks are smaller or more sporadic.

“Very seldom do we find big perch and big walleyes together,”says Jason, heading into the meat and potatoes of the topic. “Usually, schools of big perch will seem to share an area with smaller walleyes and big walleyes can often be found in proximity to small perch. Most of the time, if we want nice walleyes, for example, we are on an entirely different program than when we are hunting for big perch. There is some overlap but not much.

“Ironically, both the perch and the walleyes on Devils Lake share the same forage where freshwater shrimp or scuds make up a large part of both fish’s diet. The walleyes also consume young-of-the-year perch and white bass.”

Jason’s mindset begins to tell us that quite possibly the connection between walleyes and perch is not as strong as we thought. While it’s obvious walleyes and perch can be found in similar areas, it might not be the case that big fish in each species use those same areas at the same times.

“Devils Lake is a ‘dishpan’ lake where most of the structure and cover is along the shorelines,” says Jason. “The walleyes seem to have a preference for structure where the perch seem to like flats. One phenomena that has occurred here in the past few years is that bigger fish seem to stay shallow all winter along the shorelines. I theorize that the outrageous year classes of smaller walleyes actually take over the deeper rock piles and structure areas and the big fish don’t like to compete with all of these pesky walleyes that are smaller, less than 16 inches. We still find big fish deep on the rocks but not like we used to. What’s different now is that these spots are covered with hoards of small walleyes.”

Location tactics are probably the most difficult to come up with, but Jason seems to have those walleyes and perch nailed down. While we can certainly see some similarities between the two species, it’s also apparent that they create their own little niches from lake to lake. Granted, Jason’s findings are directed mostly toward Devils Lake, but the important idea here is the vast body of water we’re dealing with and the variety of structure. Most lakes inhabited by both species will throw an abundant selection of structural options and deciding which areas hold which species can help you save on frustration. Using similar findings can certainly increase your catch rate on lakes close to home.

“By and large, our walleyes want aggressive presentations,” says Jason. “Generally we are using spoons, swim baits and jigging them aggressively to call fish in. Once fish arrive, the fish still generally want the lure pounding or rocking.

“Set lines, dead rods and tip-ups are generally very ineffective for us. Usually, one guy with a Vexilar and a jigging rod will outfish 20 tip-ups. The walleye want the bait pounding.

“The perch, however, are much unlike perch in many other bodies of water in that they are usually not aggressive. Movement might bring fish in but they require much more subtleness to the presentation. What we see guiding is that many people learn to fish for perch on much of the good Minnesota waters where the perch are generally eating some kind of shiner or minnow, the perch even look different with much larger heads and mouths and these fish are often aggressive hitting spoons and full minnows jigged on spoons.”

“These fish on Devils Lake are bug feeders, their bodies are like footballs but the heads and mouths are small, these fish have never had to chase or work for a meal in their lives. The techniques and lures more closely resemble what many guys are doing to catch bluegills. Compound the fact that the depth is often over thirty feet and that makes detecting the bites and manipulating the lure even more difficult. When the fish are aggressive, small spoons with maggots, a minnow head or perch eye or wax worm works well but we often have to put something small below a dropper to catch these fish. Concerning these presentation details, these are just general rules of thumb and there are always exceptions.” Jason adds.

Now for the big picture…
“Perch and walleyes are similar however in the strategies used. Both seem to school the same way, spreading out across the lake bottom in pods of fish, moving through and across areas much the same way when active. Stripes attract stripes and the white on a walleye’s tail isn’t for cormorants to find them, they attract each other. Angling pressure often affects the school more than anything, breaking up a big school into small pods of scattered fish. These small pods of scattered fish are obviously harder to find but also harder to trigger because of less competition amongst themselves. For both species, the key is drilling the first holes finding the fish versus following the crowds.”

A day in the life of Jason Mitchell is different than most. Having his own TV show and trying to run a successful guide business is not always easy, but keeping an open mind about things is what allows Jason to constantly push forward. Building solid friendships out on the ice is important, and as we all know, that can be the backbone of what drives people to succeed. Devils Lake is definitely in a league of its own and pinpointing those elusive fish is never something that should be taken for granted.

“From my own experiences, however (traveling around the Midwest filming his TV show), I can say that what we have and what we do is pretty special,” notes Jason. “We have a staff of great guys who are phenomenal anglers. These guys don’t talk about fishing; they live it, fishing almost every day. We learn from each other and also learn from the people we guide as tactics and techniques different than our own originate from different parts of the country. Our network is unbelievable and our information that we have to make our decisions is really good. Not many guides in the winter have been able to quit their day job or stay that busy so we have been fortunate. Other factors for this success depend on the fact that we are on a world-class fishery that people make as a destination to fish and the lake is so massive that people often need some help to fish this water. Add that the spots are always changing and the fish are always on the move and it provides a scenario where guides are needed.

“One other aspect of our operation that really stands out is the mobility. For years, we were really isolated on Devils Lake and developed a different style to fish a big lake for schools of fish that are often moving as fast as a person walks. All of the guides on the Perch Patrol fish out of their trucks so that they can move and cover more water more effectively. Most years, snow isn’t an issue for getting around. Big moves find fish and small moves catch fish but you can really cover a lot of water fishing out of a vehicle. The Vexilar and GPS is mounted right on the dash as are several loaded rods ready to go so that when we get on a hot bite, we have multiple rods within grasp all baited up and ready to go.

“We also incorporate the flip-up Fish Traps into this style of fishing where we have the customers fish out of the Traps so that they can stay comfortable and out of the elements and we can move these houses so easily, often just dragging them to the next hole. Watching these guys drilling holes and looking for fish and then dragging Fish Traps around to stay on the fish is pretty impressive to watch.

“The flip side is that mobility is sometimes overrated in the sense that there are times where you just have to sit on top of fish and figure them out so the moving has to have reason behind it. Timing is everything and whether you are targeting walleyes or perch, there is often a window where they become more aggressive so don’t move off of fish too quick as an hour later, these same fish might open up. That is where the network really helps, nailing down the timing as it allows us to break away and try different things, different places without taking such a chance of getting burned.”

I asked him to give one word of advice to average anglers trying to approximate what he and the Perch Patrol guides do.

“Catching walleyes and perch is enjoyable because there is a hunt involved,” he says. “You are hunting for fish. With that being said, enjoy the hunt. You are not always going to hit gold so don’t beat yourself up over the fact that you didn’t find fish on a particular day – that is fishing, after all. Sometimes, as an industry we get so wrapped up in success that we make fishing into something that is intimidating or ego driven. Fish hard, learn everything you can and become a student. The learning part is the fun, so try and take most of your information from the ice.”

As we can see, teamwork is not just something we find in basketball. Teamwork out on the ice is what the Perch Patrol is all about. Take a lesson from Jason– work together with your friends and you’ll see that ice fishing will not only be more rewarding in terms of the amount of fish you catch, but also in terms of smiles shared.

While it’s obvious that walleyes and perch share many traits, there are also several aspects that are far from the same. Ultimately, the true relationship between walleyes and perch will always remain a mystery, but I guess that is what keeps us chasing those dreams of giant walleyes and jumbo perch!

Good Fishing,
Matt Johnson