The spawning males have bright orange-red fins and go to the spawning areas before the females. Smaller females can lay 3,000 eggs and a large female can lay as many as 150,000 eggs. The eggs are in long amber colored strands that are shaped like an accordion. They lay eggs over submerged tree limbs, sticks, and vegetation. It takes approximately 2 weeks for the eggs to hatch.
Yellow perch grow very quickly.
By fall the young perch reach a length of three inches. Their diet includes aquatic invertebrates and occasionally fish.