The Basse. 
475 
THE BASSE, OE SEA PERCH, (Labrax lupus,) 
Is found in abundance on our southern coasts, and is 
still more common in the Mediterranean. It has one 
long dorsal fin, like the ruffe. The flesh of this fish is 
highly esteemed. 
The Climbing Perch, (Anabas scandens,) a native of 
the fresh waters of India, possesses a very singular ap- 
paratus for enabling it to quit the water, and pass a 
considerable time on dry ground. This consists of a 
curiously folded portion of thin bone on each side of the 
head near the gills, in the cavities of which a good deal 
of water is contained; this keeps the gills in a moist 
state while the fish is out of the water, and thus enables 
it to breathe in the air. This fish is said to employ its 
singular power of quitting the water for the purpose of 
climbing trees, although what it expects to gain by so 
doing is quite unknown. Its power of climbing has 
been denied by some naturalists, but Daldorf says that 
he once caught one which had clambered to a height of 
six feet on the stem of a palm, and was in the act of 
going still higher. 
