THE WHITE PERCH 



the fresh, water of Head of Creek, near South- 

 ampton. The white perch is never plentiful in 

 Gravesend Bay; it abounds in lakes of Central 

 Park, New York, and Prospect Park, Brooklyn. 

 Near Montauk, L. I., the fish is plentiful and 

 grows very large. Eugene Smith found it com- 

 mon in brackish waters near New York all the 

 year; he also had it from fresh water. Dr. Mearns 

 states that it remains in the Hudson throughout the 

 year and is caught abundantly in winter in nets 

 set through the ice. It was reported to him that 

 individuals weighing two or three pounds were 

 caught in Oscawana Lake, Putnam County, N. Y. 

 In the vicinity of Wood's Hole, Mass., the white 

 perch is abundant in fresh-water ponds coimected 

 with salt water. Fresh-water ponds and lakes in 

 many portions of the New England States are well 

 stocked with this fish, and in some of them it 

 reaches a large size. In the tidal creeks all along 

 the east coast from New York to South Carolina 

 white perch furnish excellent fishing, and the fish 

 ascend many large rivers far above the limits of 

 tide. It is doubtful if the species extends its range 

 as far south as Florida and the Gulf of Mexico. 



Abundance 



The white perch congregates in large schools and 

 is one of the commonest of our pan-fishes. Dr. 



221 



