Species guide
Perch fishing
Perca fluviatilis
The striped shoaling fish, and the species most Norwegian children catch first.
- Size
- Often only 13-14 cm in small waters with heavy competition. Under good conditions up to 2 kg. The official Norwegian sport fishing record is 3.17 kg, and perch over 50 cm and 4 kg are very rare.
- Where it lives
- Common in southern and eastern Norway. Absent from coastal districts from the south-west northwards, scattered in Trøndelag, Nordland and Troms, and common in Finnmark.
- Best time
- June to September, in the middle of the day. And through the ice in winter.
How to tell it apart
Greenish with 5-9 dark vertical bars, a spiny front dorsal fin and orange-red pelvic fins. Deep-bodied and laterally compressed. No other Norwegian freshwater fish looks like this, so it is easy to recognise even the first time.
Where it holds
Tolerates a wide range of water quality and is found in everything from nutrient-rich lowland lakes to brackish water. Young perch shoal in shallow water along edges, jetties and vegetation. Big perch go alone or in loose groups, and hold deeper, more on edges and structure.
The season
May to June
After spawning the perch hold shallow and feed hard. Easy to find along the shore, and one of the best periods for children and beginners.
July to August
High season. The shoals chase fry at the surface, often visibly. Find a feeding frenzy and you can have a fish every cast for as long as it lasts.
September to October
Perch gather in larger shoals and move deeper. Fewer, but bigger fish. This is the period for a really large perch.
Winter, through the ice
Perch may be the best ice-fishing fish there is: active, numerous and willing on small jigs and mormyshka.
See the season month by month for every species, in the lowlands and in the mountains.
Gear
Light rod 3-15 g
A light rod and a reel in 1000-2500 with thin braid around 0.10 mm. Braid gives direct contact with small jigs, which is where much of perch fishing lives.
Lure guideWorm under a float
The most effective method for perch there is, and the simplest. Hook 8-12 with a worm under a float, along a jetty or a reed edge. Perfect for children.
GearBaits and lures
- Microjig 2-7 g
- Softbait on a jig head. The most effective thing for big perch, and the most fun to fish.
- Small spinner size 1-2
- Covers water quickly when you are looking for the shoal.
- Worm
- Beats everything else when the fish are slow, and is always the answer with children along.
- Balanced jig and mormyshka
- Ice fishing. Perch take both willingly all winter.
Spawning and diet
Spawning
Early in spring, just after ice-out. The eggs are laid in long, gelatinous ribbons on water plants and twigs in shallow water. A female can lay 80,000 to 300,000 eggs.
Diet
Fry live on zooplankton, half-grown perch on bottom fauna and especially insect larvae, and big perch on fish. Cannibalism is common, and in many waters small perch are the main food of the large ones.
Rules
Applies to all inland fish
- There is no longer a national minimum size for inland fish. Minimum and maximum sizes, daily bag limits and closed seasons are set locally, and two waters in the same municipality can have different rules.
- You need a fishing card from the rights holder wherever one is sold. The card is an agreement with the landowner, not a state fee.
- Children under 16 fish free with rod and hand line from 1 January to 20 August, except in watercourses with anadromous salmonids. This follows from section 18 of the Norwegian salmon and inland fish act.
- The state fishing fee does not apply to inland fish. It covers only salmon, sea trout and sea char.
- Releasing fish or moving live fish between waters is prohibited. Spreading species to new watercourses is one of the biggest threats to Norwegian fish stocks.
Specific to perch
- Perch rarely have closed seasons or minimum sizes of their own, but the fishing card rules for the water apply as for every other species.
- Perch have been spread to many waters where they do not belong, and can wipe out trout stocks. Moving live perch between waters is prohibited.
- In overpopulated waters with many small perch you do the stock a favour by taking the fish home. It is also one of the best eating fish in the country.
All of the above is advisory. The rules are set locally and do change, so always confirm with the rights holder or an official source before you fish.
Waters holding perch
Municipalities
Common questions
What is the best bait for perch?
- A worm under a float is the simplest and most effective, especially when the fish are slow, and it is always the answer with children along. If you want the big ones, a microjig of 2 to 7 grams beats most things. Small spinners in size 1 to 2 are good when you are looking for the shoal and need to cover water quickly.Fishing with children
When do perch bite best?
- In the middle of the day, unlike trout, and July to August is the high season when the shoals chase fry at the surface. May and June are easiest from shore because the fish hold shallow after spawning. September and October give fewer but bigger fish. In winter perch stay active under the ice all season.
How big do perch get?
- Far bigger than they get in most places, and it is the water that decides that, not the species. Where small fish stand thick, growth stops early and the whole lake sits at the same size for years. Where there is food and room enough, a few fish grow many times larger. So if you want big perch, choose the water before you choose the lure.Waters in your municipality
Sources