1

Bony Fish

I. Structure

A. Body covered with scales and mucus1. increases hydrodynamic efficiency (↓ drag)2. makes fish hard to catch3. protects fish from infection4. cosmoid, cycloid, ctenoid, ganoid5. growth rings on scales tell age of fish

Scales of Bony Fish

cycloidctenoid

cosmoid ganoid

cycloid

I. Structure

B. Bony skeleton

I. StructureC. Paired fins

Exceptions: caudal & dorsal fins

D. Swim bladder

1. Bag of gas for buoyancy (controls depth)

2

D. Swim bladdera.decrease gas

= fish goes down

b.Increase gas, fish goes up

c. Change gas content by gulping air or diffusion of

air from blood stream

E. Operculum

1. Hard flap covering gills (protection)

2. Acts as a pump to draw water across gills when not swimming

II. Two types of Bony Fish

A. Class Sarcopterigii1. Lobe finned Fishes E.g. coelocanth2. A.k.a. fleshy-finned3. E.g. lungfish

Coelocanththought extinct

until 1938

Lungfish

1. aestivate (a type of hibernation) during times of drought

2. gulp air into modified “lung”until rainy season returns

B. Class Actinopterigii Ray-finned Fishes

• (including all teleosts) (23,600 species)

• (96% of all living fishes)• Bony spines (rays) covered by skin

form fins• E. g. salmon, trout, perch, etc.

3

Salmon Rainbow trout

Greenback trout Lake Trout

Golden Trout Brook Trout

4

Cutthroat Trout Jungle Perch

Silver Perch Striped Perch

Clown fish Clown fish with eggs

5

Ocean Sunfish aka mola Ocean sunfish & kayak

Tiger grouper Grouper & diver

Grouper & diver Grumpy looking Grouper

6

Record Grouper Cleaner Wrasse & goatfish

Cleaner Wrasse & sweetlips Hawaiian wrasse

Cleaner Wrasse cleaning gills Cleaner Wrasse & moray eel

7

Cleaner Wrasse & puffer Puffer / porcupine fish

Puffer / porcupine fish Puffer / porcupine fish

Puffer / porcupine fish Box fish

8

Box fish Box fish

Box fish Cowfish

Longhorn cowfish Unicornfish

9

Humuhumunukunukuapua’a(“Small trigger fish, snout like a

pig”)Sea Horses

Bibliography• http://www.earthlife.net/fish/skeleton.html retrieved 12/6/08• http://www.itresourcing.com.au/aquaculture/species/fish/fish.htm retrieved 12/6/08• www.sharky-jones.com/.../QA7%20-%20swimming.html retrieved 12/6/08• http://universe-review.ca/R10-33-anatomy.htm retrieved 12/6/08• http://dj003.k12.sd.us/science%20labs/dissection/fish%20dissection.htm retrieved 12/6/08• http://www.sportsmanschoice.com/A%20Note%20Worth%20Reading/fish.htm retrieved 12/6/08• http://www.amonline.net.au/fishes/what/scales/index.htm retrieved 12/6/08• http://cas.bellarmine.edu/tietjen/images/subphylum_vertefish.htm retrieved 12/10/08