THE PERCH 



41 



The sub -class 'Tekostei is arranged in six orders, whereof 

 the first — Acanthoperygii^ 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 Tercida^ or Perches. 



PERCID^: 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 : 1 7 rays. 



Teeth. 

 Villiform, without canines. 

 On the palatine bones 

 and vomer. None on 

 the tongue. 



The Perch. 



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, " Look at the 

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

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

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

 irepKY), spotted or pied, all of common origin with the Sanskrit 

 pricniy 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 bars, a word which is 

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

 the modern German barsch and the Dutch baars^ both signifying 



