PERCH AND PERCH FISHING 



of fish is certain to be kept up. How many eggs a 

 perch of a given size deposits cannot be stated with 

 accuracy. Doubtless the numbei varies with the age 

 of the fish. Several calculations have been made, 

 and the results differ materially. Buckland estimated 

 that there were 127,240 eggs in a perch weighing 

 2 Ib. ii oz., and 155,620 in one of 3 Ib. 2 oz. On the 

 other hand, a fish of i Ib. 8 oz. was said to contain 

 280,000 eggs. In due course the eggs hatch out, and 

 the resulting fry, which are minute creatures, com- 

 mence the battle of life in their watery world. And a 

 battle indeed it is, for they are the prey of all the 

 predatory fish; even sticklebacks will gobble them 

 up, their own parents eat them, they are devoured by 

 chub, big and little, and when grown to a suitable 

 size pike feed on them freely. 



A question always of interest to sportsmen is the 

 size their quarry attain. The rate at which perch 

 grow depends entirely on the size of the water in 

 which they dwell and the amount of food it contains. 

 In rivers and lakes, six inches at the age of three 

 years may be stated as an average length. Those of us 

 who are in the fifties and sixties oft sigh for the perch 

 that are no more for the perch of other days. When 

 again, I wonder, shall we read of such a catch as that 

 made by the late Francis Francis in the Kennet? 



