Big fish tales in Wisconsin don't only revolve around muskies and sturgeon.

They can even have a panfish as the central character.

If, that is, the fish is a giant for its species.

The plot gets even richer if it focuses on one of our favorites, maybe even the state's most valuable fish in history in terms of culture, commerce and sport.

A Wisconsin big fish story emerged last week that I felt compelled to share.

I particularly like it because it's verified and true, because it doesn't include a big, broad-shouldered game fish but rather a yellow perch, and because the fish, a female bulging with eggs, is still swimming.

What's more, the perch wasn't just large, it was state-record large.

The tale comes to us courtesy of Kyle Tokarski, 31, of Green Bay. Tokarski, a licensed guide who works for Ice Fish Green Bay and Alexander Sport Fishing, spends most of the year fishing on Green Bay.

From walleyes to muskies to lake whitefish to yellow perch and from open water to hard, few anglers know the Green Bay fishery as well as Tokarski.

One of his favorite opportunities of the year is the chance to target big, pre-spawn walleyes in mid-March.

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That's exactly what he was doing Monday on dwindling ice in the southwestern portion of the bay. His group included Bret Alexander, 50, of Sturgeon Bay, owner of the guide services.

The men drilled an array of 10-inch diameter holes in about 13 feet of water. The extra-wide holes (standard ice fishing augers are 6 or 8 inches) are sometimes necessary to land the bay's big fish.

Little did Tokarski know he'd need it for a perch.

The anglers fanned out and started jigging. Action was fair and several walleyes were iced, including a 32-incher caught by Alexander. The trophy, estimated at 12 pounds, would have been the fish of a lifetime for most anglers. 

Alexander and Tokarski, though, catch several walleyes that size every year. After a few photos the walleye was released.

The hefty walleye would have been the most memorable fish of the outing on most days. But Monday it was about to be outshone by a panfish.

Tokarski, fishing with a #5 Jigging Rapala tipped with a minnow head, saw a good size mark on his flasher unit. It followed his bait, but he missed the strike.

Fortunately it came back and moved in on his jig again. Tokarski hooked the fish about 4 feet off the bottom.

"Second time was the charm," Tokarski said. "I had no idea how surprised I was going to be."

Tokarski's rod bent to the weight of a solid fish, which he said felt like a 20-inch walleye.

He gradually worked the fish toward the surface and cleared the transducer from the hole. Then, as he reached down to land it, a beautiful yellow, green and orange creature came into view.

Tokarski slipped his thumb in the fish's mouth and carefully lipped it through the hole.

It barely fit.

"We were like 'Holy cow, that's really a perch,'" Tokarski said. "It was unbelievable. I've never seen anything like it."

The fish's rounded belly looked like a caricature of a Buddha statue. But the perch was real.

The men pulled out a tape measure to check the fish's dimensions. It was an astounding 17 inches long and had a mind-boggling girth of 16 inches.

Tokarski has caught lots of perch on the bay, but his largest before Monday was 14 inches long. The big fish was obviously a female full of eggs. 

"It looked like it was as round as a dinner plate," Tokarski said.

After a few photos, Tokarski readied the fish for release.

That step – letting it go – was likely going to come anyway. Tokarski is a big proponent of catch-and-release to help sustain the high quality of the bay's fishery.

But in this case it was mandatory. The yellow perch season on Green Bay closed March 15.

Tokarski turned his phone to video mode and made a short clip of holding the fish and then putting it back in the hole.

The perch flipped its tail twice and swooshed out of sight.

How big was that perch? 

The anglers did not carry a scale with them on Monday so it wasn't weighed.  But there is a very good chance it was as large, if not larger, than the state record yellow perch, a 3 pound 4 ounce fish caught in 1954 on Lake Winnebago. The length of that fish was not recorded, according to the Department of Natural Resources.

A replica mount of the state record perch is displayed in the Cabela's store in Green Bay. Tokarski thinks the fish he caught-and-released was bigger than the mount.

This much is a lead-pipe cinch:  Tokarski's perch would have set a state record in the "live release" category. A 13-incher caught June 8, 2019, on Lake Altoona in Eau Claire County holds that record.

Tokarski didn't take a photo of his fish next to a measuring tape, however, so it can't be entered in the catch-and-release category.

When I spoke to him on the phone Thursday, records seemed like the furthest thing from his mind.

"I feel very fortunate to have experienced something like this," Tokarski said. "When you catch such a rare fish, you just have to be thankful. I'm happy to know it's still swimming."

Isn't that the best way for a big fish tale to end?

Catch and release tips

Fisheries benefit when anglers exercise selective harvest of certain species and liberally utilize catch-and-release, especially of highly-desired fish such as walleyes, smallmouth bass, muskies and big panfish.

To increase the odds of a successful release: land the fish as quickly as possible; keep the fish in the water as much as possible; handle the fish as little as possible; use wet hands or gloves; if the fish is deeply hooked, cut the line and let the fish go; hold the fish with two hands as much as possible; treat the fish gently throughout the release; if a fish needs to be revived, hold the fish in the water and gently rock it side to side until it can maintain its balance, and when it begins to struggle, let it swim away.
