ABSTRACT
Eurasian perch Perca fluviatilis L. is a wide-spread fresh water species inhabiting both brackish and fresh waters. Perch has been historically a major fish species of high commercial value for coastal sea fishery in Estonia with peak annual landings of above 2000 tons in the mid-1970s. After that the annual landings have been decreased (Järv 1996). The same, but not so obvious, decreasing trend of perch catches have been observed elsewhere in the Baltic Sea (Karås et al. 1997, Ljunggren et al. 2005).
