see text The Percidae are a family of ray-finned fish, part of the order Perciformes, which are found in fresh and brackish waters of the Northern Hemisphere.

The family is characterised by having the dorsal fin split into two[2] which are normally separated or have a narrow connection, although this is wider in the genus Zingel,[3] the front section contains the spines and the rear section contains the soft rays.

The pelvic fins are placed on the thorax and have a single spine and 5 soft rays.

[3] The maximum size attained is 100 centimetres (39 in) in the zander (Sander lucioperca)[4] but most of the species in the family are much smaller.

[5] The 5th Edition of Fishes of the World classifies the Percidae into five subfamilies[3] and Fishbase recognises 239 species in 11 genera.