2 PERCID.E. 



and descriptions hereafter appended to such as are British 

 will sufficiently explain. The Perch was well known to the 

 Greeks, and Aristotle has described its habits under the 

 name of TLzpzr;- It was the Perca of the Romans ; and 

 is called Pergesa in Italy, Perscke in Prussia, la Pcrche in 

 France, and Perch in England. As a species, it is common 

 to the whole of the temperate parts of Europe ; and in Eng- 

 land there is scarcely a river or lake of any extent Avhere 

 this fish does not occur. It is found also in the lakes of Wales. 

 In the various historical and statistical accounts of the coun- 

 ties of Ireland, the Perch may be traced through the southern, 

 eastern, and northern districts from Cork to Londonderry, and 

 is probably to be found also in the rivers and lakes of most, 

 if not all the other counties. A friend who writes in the 

 Magazine of Zoology and Botany says of the Perch in Scot- 

 land, that it is only sparingly met with in the lochs north of 

 the Forth ; and in one or two places where it is found north 

 of Perthshire, its introduction may be traced to no distant 

 period. In all the almost countless waters of the northern 

 counties of Scotland the Perch is said to be wanting. It is 

 not included by Low in his Fishes of Orkney and Shetland ; 

 but still farther north it again occurs, and is mentioned by 

 Nilsson and others as inhabiting various parts of Scandinavia. 

 In rivers, the Perch prefers the sides of the stream rather than 

 the rapid parts of the current, and feeds indiscriminately upon 

 insects, worms, and small fishes. So remarkable is the 

 Perch for its boldness and voracity, that in a few days after 

 some specimens had been placed in a vivarium, in Bushy 

 Park, Mr. Jesse tells us, they came freely and took worms 

 from his fingers, and the Perch is generally the first prize 

 of the juvenile angler. They have been known to breed 

 in small vases ; and Bloch mentions having watched some 

 while depositing their ova in long strings in a vessel kept in 

 his room. A Perch of half a pound weight has been found to 



