A Perchy Perch!
Objectives:
- To explore the functions and locations of structures in the perch, focusing on the circulatory system.
- To understand the roles of perches in their environments.
- To exercise the dissection skills of students and their ability with lab equipment.
Taxonomy:
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Osteichthyes
- Order: Periciforms
- Family: Pericidae
- Genus: Perca
- Species: Flavenscens
Background Information:
Perca flacenscens, or the yellow perch, are long yellow fish. Some perch can grow over a foot! Yellow perches are golden yellow and have dark vertical bands running the length of the fish. A fish may have between 5-8 bands per side. Perch have adapted to the environment that they live in, as their coloration allows them to easily camouflage within sea plants and vegetation, hiding them from potential predators. Perches are native to the waters around Canada and the United States, however their predominant habitat is a warm water lake with lots of vegetation to hid amongst. Perch have 6 fins: 1 caudal, 1 anal, 1 pelvic, 1 pectoral, and 2 dorsal fins. The fins help the perch move and swim in the ocean. They also give stability to the perch as it is swimming fast so that it can more effectively escape any looming predators. The caudal fin helps the perch go forward, dorsal fins help steer it and give stability, the pectoral fin keeps it moving forwards or backwards, the anal fin steers the perch, and the pelvic fin offers an additional layer of stability. Perch are carnivorous fish which feed on smaller fish, shellfish, and insect larvae. Predators to the perch include fish such as bass, crappie, catfish, and pickerel. Perch are also predated upon by birds such as eagles and hawks.
Perca flacenscens, or the yellow perch, are long yellow fish. Some perch can grow over a foot! Yellow perches are golden yellow and have dark vertical bands running the length of the fish. A fish may have between 5-8 bands per side. Perch have adapted to the environment that they live in, as their coloration allows them to easily camouflage within sea plants and vegetation, hiding them from potential predators. Perches are native to the waters around Canada and the United States, however their predominant habitat is a warm water lake with lots of vegetation to hid amongst. Perch have 6 fins: 1 caudal, 1 anal, 1 pelvic, 1 pectoral, and 2 dorsal fins. The fins help the perch move and swim in the ocean. They also give stability to the perch as it is swimming fast so that it can more effectively escape any looming predators. The caudal fin helps the perch go forward, dorsal fins help steer it and give stability, the pectoral fin keeps it moving forwards or backwards, the anal fin steers the perch, and the pelvic fin offers an additional layer of stability. Perch are carnivorous fish which feed on smaller fish, shellfish, and insect larvae. Predators to the perch include fish such as bass, crappie, catfish, and pickerel. Perch are also predated upon by birds such as eagles and hawks.
Human Impacts:
Humans eat perch all the time. Perch are an easy to catch fish which are also very tasty. However, the fishing of perch has a darker side. The demand for perch to eat is so high now that perch are in danger of becoming overfished, which would reduce their population numbers and set off the environment drastically. |
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The Circulatory System:
The function of the circulatory system is to circulate blood, oxygen, nutrients, and hormones throughout the body. The perch has a single loop closed circulatory system, which means that blood remains in vessels instead of flowing freely within tissues. Arteries bring blood away from the heart, fresh with oxygen, and veins return the deoxygenated blood back to the heart to be reoxygenated. Capillaries then distribute the blood to tissues and route old blood back to the heart. The system is made up of
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Fun Facts!
- There are more than 6,000 species of perch.
- The female perch is larger than the male perch.
- Sometimes schools of perch are separated by gender.
- Adult females lay over 10,000 eggs at a time during reproduction.
- Yellow perch lay their eggs in long, connected ribbons.
- A perch's esophagus is flexible, which means it can accommodate foods of all sizes.
- The largest yellow perch ever caught weight 3 pounds and 4 ounces.
Works Cited:http://www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/fishfacts/art/yellow_perch_PIB_Img_0928_web.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/YellowPerch.jpg (picture only)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Silver_perch_(_Bairdiella_chrysoura_).jpg (picture only)
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4e4g4sJvZnQ/UIXdEbPll6I/AAAAAAAABjU/ZQhT63KrREc/s1600/P1050399.JPG
http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/2010/dorff_kell/classification.htm
http://www.kidsbiology.com/animals-for-children.php?animal=Perch
http://fishandboat.com/pafish/fishhtms/chap23.htm
http://www.outdooralabama.com/fishing/freshwater/fish/perch/yellow/
http://sol.lcbp.org/images/Fig16-foodweb-2012_large.png
http://wamu.org/sites/wamu.org/files/styles/headline_landscape/public/images/attach/photo_8-edit.jpg?itok=1Fy6Ahbw
http://bioscholars2.wikispaces.com/file/view/cladogram_1.gif/166557489/417x250/cladogram_1.gif
http://www.biologycorner.com/worksheets/dragonfly/cladogram.gif
http://www.infovisual.info/02/img_en/033%20Internal%20anatomy%20of%20a%20bony%20fish.jpg
http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/2010/dorff_kell/adaptation.htm
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/YellowPerch.jpg (picture only)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Silver_perch_(_Bairdiella_chrysoura_).jpg (picture only)
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4e4g4sJvZnQ/UIXdEbPll6I/AAAAAAAABjU/ZQhT63KrREc/s1600/P1050399.JPG
http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/2010/dorff_kell/classification.htm
http://www.kidsbiology.com/animals-for-children.php?animal=Perch
http://fishandboat.com/pafish/fishhtms/chap23.htm
http://www.outdooralabama.com/fishing/freshwater/fish/perch/yellow/
http://sol.lcbp.org/images/Fig16-foodweb-2012_large.png
http://wamu.org/sites/wamu.org/files/styles/headline_landscape/public/images/attach/photo_8-edit.jpg?itok=1Fy6Ahbw
http://bioscholars2.wikispaces.com/file/view/cladogram_1.gif/166557489/417x250/cladogram_1.gif
http://www.biologycorner.com/worksheets/dragonfly/cladogram.gif
http://www.infovisual.info/02/img_en/033%20Internal%20anatomy%20of%20a%20bony%20fish.jpg
http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/2010/dorff_kell/adaptation.htm