THE PERCH 41 



The sub -class Teleostei is arranged in six orders, whereof 

 the first Acanthopterygii, or Spiny-finned Fishes is dis- 

 tinguished by the presence of spinous rays, more or less sharply 

 pointed, in one or more of the fins. This great order 

 is again subdivided into nineteen sub-orders, the first of which 

 is that of Acanthopterygii perciformes, or Perch-like Spiny- 

 finned Fishes, a well-defined clan, with spinous dorsal fin 

 well developed, and a soft anal fin. The first family in this 

 sub-order is that of the Tercidtf, or Perches. 



PERCID^E: THE PERCH FAMILY 

 The Perch (Perca fluviatilis) 



FIN FORMULA. 



First Dorsal : 14 or 15 spines. 

 Second Dorsal : i spine or 2, 13 or 14 rays. 

 Pectoral : 14 rays. 

 Ventral : i spine, 5 rays. 

 Anal : 2 spines, 8 or 9 rays. 

 Caudal or tail fin : 17 rays. 



TEETH. 



Villiform, without canines. 

 On the palatine bones 

 and vomer. None on 

 the tongue. 



The eye of one peering curiously into a clear lake, or the 

 tranquil depths of an English river, may be attracted by the 

 gliding movement in mid-water of certain groups 

 ' of dark vertical bars, like shadows. " Look at the 

 perch ! " he will exclaim, if he knows anything about aquatic 

 life, all unconscious that he is really saying, 4< Look at the 

 striped fellows!" For that is the root meaning of the English 

 word u perch," which has found its way into our vocabulary 

 through the French perche^ the Latin perca, and the Greek 

 -n-ep/oy, spotted or pied, all of common origin with the Sanskrit 

 pricni y and connected with the Latin spargere and English 

 sprinkle. In East Anglia and Lancashire the perch is known as 

 the barse, representing the Anglo-Saxon b<ers^ a word which is 

 glossed "perca, lupus," in ^Elfric's Glossary. This is the same as 

 the modern German barsch and the Dutch baars y both signifying 



