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| Recognition | The perch with its large mouth, spiked dorsal fin and striped flanks is easy to recognise. It has natural camouflage and large eyes, hunting its prey mainly by sight. The perch is also one of only a few freshwater species that have two dorsal fins. |
| British record | 5lb 9oz 8dr |
| Location | Perch can be found in just about any water from small ponds to rivers and lochs |
| Behaviour | The young perch swims in shoals and the adult perch will form small groups. |
| Preferred Habitats | With its large eyes the perch will shy away from sunny areas, preferring shaded areas such as undercut banks, overhanging trees, shrubs, weed rafts, lily beds and deeper waters. As the light fades so the perch will move in to shallower waters looking for prey. |
| Best Feeding Times | Dawn in summer, but feeding periods will be longer in dull conditions. |
| Natural Food | Small fish including their own young, insects, worms, crayfish. |
| Maturity | Male 2 – 4, Female 4 – 6 years |
| Spawning Times | April to May |
| Preferred Spawning Areas | Perch like to lay their eggs in dense weed beds. |
| Fecundity | 10,000 to 200,000 eggs. |
