Fishes

Vocabulary list

A carnivore /ˈkɑrnɪvɔər/ meaning 'meat eater' - an organism an organism whose diet consists mainly or exclusively of animal tissue

A herbivore - an animal that eats plant material

A parasite - a small animal that lives on or inside another animal and gets its food from it

A scavenger - an animal that consums the dead animal and plant material

cartilage /ˈkɑrtɨlɨdʒ/ - a flexible connective tissue in animals

A cartilaginous fish (chondrichthy) – a fish whose skeleton composed entirely of cartilage (sharks, rays and skates)

fin rays - fins being webs of skin supported by bony spines ("rays")

 

Lampreys and hagfishes are jawless fishes. Their bodies are supported by a notochord. They do not have true teeth or jaws. They are parasites and scavengers.

The cartilaginous fishes (class Chondrichthyes) include sharks, rays, and skates.

All members of this group of fishes have a skeleton made of cartilage. Most also have toothlike scales covering their skin.

Body fishes (class Osteichthyes) have skeletons made of bone. Almost all bony fishes belong to the group known as the ray-finned fishes. Their fins have thin, bony spines that are joined together by a thin layer of skin.

Answer the questions:

What is the feeding behavior for jawless fish?

What does the term “scavenger” mean?

Name fishes of the class Chondrichthyes.

What group do the ray-finned fishes belong to?

What types of fishes according to their feeding behavior do you know?

Feeding and reproducing of fish

Vocabulary list

herbivore - an animal that eats only plants: Cows and sheep are herbivores.

carnivore - an animal that eats meat

parasite - a small animal that lives on or inside another animal and gets its food from it

filter feeder – an animal that feeds by getting food particles from water

detritus feeder - an animal that consume decomposing plant and animal parts

yolk - the round, yellow part in the middle of an egg

sac - a part in an animal that is like a small bag

oviparous  - animals that lay eggs

ovoviviparous – animals in which embryos that develop inside eggs remain in the mother's body until they are ready to hatch

viviparous – animals whose embryo develops inside the body of the mother

Fishes have various modes of feeding. Fishes are herbivores, carnivores, parasites, filter feeders, and detritus feeders. One fish may even have several different modes of feeding, depending on the food available.

Fishes reproduce in a number of ways. Their eggs are fertilized either externally or internally, depending on the species. Some lay eggs. They are called oviparous. In ovoviviparous fishes, the eggs develop inside the female. The embryos are fed by an attached yolk sac. In viviparous fishes, the embryos get their food from the mother’s body, not from an egg.

 

Answer the questions:

What types of fish are there according to their model of feeding?

How can fish eggs be fertilized?

Name the fish that lay eggs.

Name the fish whose embryo develop inside mother’s body.

What type of fish have eggs inside mother’s body till babies become able to hatch?