Silver Perch, Bairdiella chrysoura

Silver Perch, Bairdiella chrysoura, Juvenile. Fish caught off the beach in Tampa, Florida, August 2019. Length 6.1 cm (2.4 inches).  Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Luke Ovgard, Klamath Falls, Oregon.

Silver Perch, Bairdiella chrysoura. Fish caught from coastal streams in Charleston, South Carolina, June 2016. Length 10 cm (3.9 inches). Catch, photograph, and identification courtesy of Josh Leisen (joshadventures.com), Gaylord, Michigan.

Silver Perch, Bairdiella chrysoura. Fish caught off the Lynnhaven Fishing Pier, Virginia Beach, Virginia, August 2015. Length: 12.5 cm (4.9 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Marc Eberlein, Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Silver Perch, Bairdiella chrysoura. Fish caught off the Dunedin Causeway, Dunedin, Florida, March 2016. Length: 12.7 cm (5.0 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Ryan Crutchfield, Tampa, Florida.

Silver Perch, Bairdiella chrysoura. Fish caught off the beach in Tampa, Florida, August 2019. Length 18 cm (7.1 inches).  Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Luke Ovgard, Klamath Falls, Oregon.

Silver Perch, Bairdiella chrysoura. Fish caught from coastal waters off Galveston, Texas, December 2018. Length: 20 cm (7.9 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).

Silver Perch, Bairdiella chrysoura. Fish caught from the Riverwalk Fishing Pier, Bradenton, Florida, January 2013. Length: 20 cm (7.9 inches). Catch, photograph, and identification courtesy of Kenneth Tse, Toronto, Canada.

Silver Perch, Bairdiella chrysoura. Fish caught from coastal waters off Sebastian, Florida, April 2021. Length: 22 cm (8.7 inches). Catch, photograph, and identification courtesy of Ben Cantrell, Sebastian, Florida.

The Silver Perch, Bairdiella chrysoura is a member of the Croaker or Sciaenidae Family, that is also known as the American Silver Perch and the Silver Croaker and in Mexico as ronco amarillo. Globally, there are five species in the genus Bairdiella, of which two are found in Mexican waters both in the Pacific Ocean.

The Silver Perch has an elongated rectangular body. They are silvery with bluish or greenish tinges dorsally and transition to bright silvery or yellow ventrally. Their anal, pectoral, and pelvic fins are dusky or with yellow tinges. Their anal fin has 2 spines, the second being thin and two-thirds the length of the first ray, and 8 to 10 rays; their caudal fin is slightly pointed or straight; their first dorsal fin has 10 or 11 spines; their second dorsal fin has 19 to 23 rays. Their head is narrow with large eyes. Their mouth is terminal, moderately-large, and oblique and ends under the rear margin of the eyes. Their projecting lower jaw is equipped with small conical teeth set in narrow bands on the upper jaw and as a single row on the lower jaw. They have 3 pairs of pores on their chin. They do not have barbels. Their preoperculum has a few spines set at an angle. They have exceptional hearing when compared to other fish. They have 22 to 24 gill rakers. Their lateral line ends at the center of the caudal fin and they are covered with rough scales.

The Silver Perch is a demersal species that is found in brackish and freshwater coastal waters over sandy and muddy bottoms at depths up to 38 m (125 feet). They reach a maximum of 30 cm (12 inches) in length. The Silver Perch migrate seasonally to feeding and nursery areas in estuaries and to freshwater during the summer months. They have exceptional hearing when compared to other fish. They feed on crustaceans and small fish. They have a lifespan of up to 6 years. The Silver Perch  is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.

The Silver Perch is a resident of Mexican waters of the Atlantic Ocean and is found along the central and northwest coasts of the Gulf of Mexico.

The Silver Perch is most likely confused with the Sand Seatrout, Cynoscion arenarius (one or two prominent canine teeth on upper jaw; no chin pores).

From a conservation perspective the Silver Perch is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely abundant populations. They are caught regularly by recreational anglers but are not a focus species. They are also caught commercially with gill nets, seines, and bottom trawls. They are sold commercially primarily as a live bait and as a food for human consumption on a limited basis. Although small in stature, they are considered to be an excellent food fish.