The Life of a Perch
Virtual Dissection Lab
Perca flavescens
Objectives!
Background Info!
Predators
Habitat
Adaptations
Perch have many adaptations that have allowed them to survive. They can live in a number of places including turbid, fertile, and eutrophic water. One specialized adaptation are the perch's palatines. Palatines are teeth that perch use to eat small fish. Another adaptations are their gill rakers which filter out zooplankton and insects.
PRey
taxonomy
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Percidae
Genus: Perca
Species: flavescens
evolutionary relationships of a perch
Perch Dissection
External Anatomy
Internal Anatomy
Circulatory System in Detail
circulatory System
The perch's circulatory system is quite crucial. It is made up of 2 chambered heart, gills, venule, vein, atrium ventricle, arteries, capillaries, arteriole, heart, and capillary beds. The function of the circulatory system is to oxygenate blood and send it back to the heart through the gills. During this time, the blood is distributed throughout the Perch's body through the single circuit. The circulatory system of the perch works with the digestive system. After the small intestines absorb nutrient from food, the nutrients are transfered to the liver. Then, the liver gives the nutrients into the bloodstream that distributes it the rest of the body.
ecology
symbiotic relationships
trophic level
population dynamics
human impacts on perch
evolution
environmental responses
Read the following article for more information on how climate change could affect the yellow perch.
Facts about Perchs you Probably did Not Know!
- The perch's method for spawning is interesting. The female perch lays her eggs in long strands that are floating or hanging from structures.
- The yellow perch are found in 13,000 acres of ponds and lakes
- The largest perch ever recorded weighed 3 lbs, 5 oz and was caught in a pond in Maryland.
- They are the must abundant fish species in Chesapeake Bay
- They are very closely related to the striped bass
Map of most Common Perch Locations
My Experience
Below are some pictures from the perch dissection we did in class: