Perch Dissection Lab
Phillip Goldman
Background information
The Perch also know as the Perca is a member of pylum chordata. It live in fresh water and preys upon minnows, blood shrimp, razor clams and grass shrimp. Perches are eaten by stripped bass, weak fish, bluefish and walleye. Perches are very color full which help them with mating. They also tend to travel in large packs to help protect them from predators. The Perch helps the ecosystem by acting as a type of population control.
Internal anatomy view of perch
During dissection
External anatomy view
labeled picture of the outside of a perch
Internal anatomy view
labeled picture of the inside of a perch.
Circulatory system
The circulatory system of a perch is know as a single loop circulatory system. This means that blood flows to the heart from only one direction. The heat is made up of two parts know as the ventricle and the atrium. To start of the process blood enters the gills of the fish from the afferent branches of the ventral aorta. The The aorta pumps blood to the rest of the arteries and capillaries pump deoxygenated blood into the veins to go to the heart.
Functions of the Circulatory system
Ventricle-chamber of the heart
Atrium-chamber of the heart
Capillaries- pumps deoxygenated blood into the veins
Veins-move deoxygenated blood to the heat
Aorta-distributes blood to body
Gills- responsible for oxygen intake.
Interesting Facts
1-Packs of Perches are sometimes split into packs of male and female.
2-Perches lay eggs that stick to plants
3- There are 3 different colors of Perches.
Human Impact
Perches are a very popular fish in North America and are highly prized. The perch can act as very good bate to catch other fish.
Classification
Kingdom- animalia
phylum- chordata
class- actinopterygii
order- perciformes
family- percidae
genus- perca