Main characteristics of river perch

In our country, only children know what this spiny, striped predator looks like. Everyone else, probably even those who have nothing to do with fishing, are well acquainted with its appearance, taste, and prickly defenses. And in our publications, you can find many complimentary words about perch, with recipes for cooking them or unique methods for catching this predatory fish, but we want to describe its lifestyle, habits, and characteristics. We won't mention the appearance of this beautiful striped creature; let's start with more important points.

Traits of a Predator

As a reminder, perch is a whole family, including fish such as zander, bersh, and ruff. All of them are beautiful in appearance, and any fisherman considers fishing these trophies from the depths of water a special pleasure.

Predators boldly attack various baits, making them surprisingly easy to catch. They eagerly swallow spoons, wobblers, and worms without spending half an hour sucking on them, as do crucian carp or carp. Their main characteristics are:

• A fairly large mouth filled with many small teeth;
• Spiky, fin-like plumage;
• A huge hump, which is why fishermen call large perches “humpback”;
• Small scales that our housewives do not like to clean, although how to do it quickly and easily was described here.

This predator lives in schools, and if a single perch is caught, it's possible, if the fisherman does everything right, to land all the other perch that are nearby. The largest perch can grow up to half a meter and weigh up to 2 kg. However, the largest specimen caught in Russia holds a record at almost 6 kilograms (5 kg 965 g).

The river perch is found in almost every "puddle," meaning its habitat is rivers, lakes, ponds, etc. Its marine relatives live in the seas and have similar appearances, but they often lack distinctive stripes on their sides.

What is the lifestyle of river species?

You can catch perch in virtually any weather conditions and season, when they come to the shore and greedily hunt their prey. Their favorite water temperatures are considered to be 10-20 degrees Celsius. Although this trophy is very bloodthirsty and prickly, it is often hunted by various species of the underwater and surface world, namely:

• pike;
• slush;
• salmon;
• pike perch;
• som;
• acne.

Perch are also hunted by various birds (seagulls, loons, ospreys, etc.). Therefore, the predator must be constantly on guard to avoid becoming a snack for its neighbors.

Fishermen often catch this beautiful fish to prepare various sweet delicacies. Perch meat is considered delicious and slightly sweet, making fish soups and cutlets healthier and more unique in flavor.