Scientists removed 285,000 fish from a Wisconsin lake to help walleye, but perch rose 788% instead

Scientists removed about 285,000 centrarchid fish from Wisconsin’s McDermott Lake between 2018 and 2021 to see if reducing competition and predation could help walleye recover. The experiment sharply reduced several fish species and saw yellow perch numbers rise by about 788%. However, researchers found no detectable natural walleye recruitment, showing that removing centrarchids alone did not restore the lake’s walleye population.