Lab 5, Lab 6 :Groups, Orders, Families

Group Acanthopterygii (“spiny wings)

• largest group of teleosts

• ctenoid scales

• physoclistous swim bladder

• two distinct dorsal fins (1st spiny, 2nd rayed)

• pelvic and anal fins with spines

• thoracic positioned pelvic fins

• pectoral fins placed laterally

• hypural plate (fused bones of last few caudal vertebrae)

Order Cyprinodontiformes

• hermaphroditism (self-fertilization) or parthenogenesis (lacking functional males: eggs develop without fertilization)

• scales on the head

• no lateral line

order Gasterosteiformes

• Order of fishes including sticklebacks and tubesnouts.

• Characterized by elongate bodies.

• Often have bony plates or spines instead of scales.

• Inhabit both freshwater and saltwater environments.

Order Syngnathiformes

• long, thin, cylindrical, with bones encircling body

• binocular vison

• no pelvic fin

Order SCORPAENIFORMES

• suborbital stay

Family SCORPAENIDAE

• Mouth moderately large and terminal.

• Gill membranes separate from isthmus (see notes for labs 1& 2, Fig. 9).

• Seven branchiostegal rays.

• Two opercular and five preopercular spines.

• Two closely adjacent dorsal fins with 11-17 spines in first, and 8-18 soft rays in second.

• Anal fin has three strong spines and 5-9 rays.

• Fine spines may have toxin gland at base for defense, as in the highly venomous tropical and
  subtropical lionfishes and scorpionfish.

Family HEXAGRAMMIDAE

• Family of moderately elongate fishes in the North Pacific.

• Common in shallow waters and sometimes at greater depths.

• Display sexual dimorphism in coloration.

• Have distinctive cirri (fleshy flaps) above eyes.

Family ANOPLOPOMATIDAE

• Head without spines, ridges or cirri

• Two dorsal fins elongated and separate

• Two well developed nostrils, gill membranes attached to the isthmus

• Single lateral line

• Body colour is blackish to greenish. Sablefish are wide-ranging and often migratory. Adults can be found on mud bottom in depths of 300 to 1,500 m.

• Small scales and is weakly ctenoid

Family COTTIDAE

• Most are stout-bodied and tapering towards tail, with narrow caudal peduncles.

• Large heads, with eyes tending to be nearer top of head than sides.

• Most species have numerous small fleshy appendages, cirri that may have a sensory or camouflage function.

• No spines in anal fin.

• Pectoral fins expanded and fanlike.

• Pelvic fins small, thoracic

Family RHAMPHOCOTTIDAE

• Family separated from other sculpins due to unique features.

• Known for making grunting or hissing sounds via swim bladder vibrations.

• Found in tidepools and coastal waters up to 50 meters deep.

Family HEMITRIPTERIDAE

• Reduced ctenoid scales in the form of minute spines embedded in papillae covering the body

• Six branchiostegal rays

• Long dorsal fin rays made of spiny rays anteriorly followed by a deep notch

• Lower jaw and top of head have fleshy cirri

• Rounded caudal fin

Family AGONIDAE – Poachers, Alligatorfishes

• elongated, bony plate coverings

• expanded fanlike pectorals, like the cottids

• pelvic fins thoracic and reduced to one spine and two rays

• mouth ventral or terminal

• long caudal peduncle
  • no anal fin spines

Family Cyclopteridae- lumpfish

• globose body shape
• thoracic-positioned pelvic fins modified into a circular disc, used for adhering to smooth
rock surfaces, often in wave-swept rocky areas
• body usually covered with horny tubercles
• two short dorsal fins, the second never confluent with the caudal, as it is in snailfishes
• short anal fin

Family LIPARIDAE- Snailfishes

• elongate body shape

• in many species, dorsal and anal fins often elongated and confluent, or nearly confluent, with caudal fin

• scales, tubercles, and lateral line usually absent, resulting in unusually smooth, slippery body surface

• gill openings small

• circular fused pelvic sucking dis

Order Percifromes

• Fin spines.
• Dorsal fins double or consisting of two distinct parts with the first being spiny.
• No adipose fin.
• Pelvic fins thoracic or jugular (in front of pectorals) in position.
• Pelvic fins with one spine and five or fewer rays.
• Pectoral fins on sides of body, with vertical insertion on body.
• Seventeen or fewer principal caudal fin rays.
• Scales ctenoid or scales absent, cycloid in a few.
• Premaxilla is the only bone bordering the upper jaw.
• Swim bladder physoclistous or absent.

Family CENTRARCHIDAE – Sunfishes, Basses, Crappies

• moderate to very deep body

• spinous and soft rayed dorsal fins joined closely more so than in percids

• moderately forked tail

• large eyes

Family PERCIDAE – Perches, Darters, Walleye, Sauge

• pelvic fins are thoracic

• branchiostegal membrane not joined to isthmus

Family ECHENEIDAE (Remoras)

• body is elongate, head is flattened and lower jaw projects past upper jaw

• small cycloid scales

• dorsal and anal fins lacking spines

• fusiform body

• branchiostegal rays 8-11

• sucking disc on head (developed from a transformed spinous dorsal fin)

Family CORYPHAENIDAE (Dolphinfishes)

• surface dwelling, ray fin fish

• forms schools

Family CARANGIDAE – Jacks

Family MULLIDAE (Goatfishes)

• marine; rarely in brackish water

• two long independently movable hyoid barbels

• two widely separated dorsal fins, the first with 6-8 spines and the second with one spine, 8-9 soft rays

• soft dorsal fins are shorter than anal fin; anal fin has 1-2 small spines and 5-8 soft rays

• caudal fin forked
  

Family TOXOTIDAE (Archerfishes)

shooting insects down with water droplets from specialized mouth

Family CHAETODONTIDAE (Butterflyfishes)

• Most have elongate snouts for reaching into crevices

• bristle-like teeth

• Highly laterally compressed fishes, which gives them a very narrow frontal profile.

• Yellow is predominant colour, but various multihued background colours occur with stripes, spots and more complex patterns.

• Large dorsal and anal fins.

• Conspicuous pelvic axillary processes are present

Family POMACANTHIDAE (Marine Angelfishes)

• stout posterior spine on the preopercular

• unlike butterflyfishes, lack pelvic axillary processes

• three spines in anal fin

• many species have an elongate extension on hind margin of soft dorsal and anal fins

• caudal fin rounded to strongly lunate with 15 branched rays

• compressed

• small mouth

Family CICHLIDAE (Cichlids)

• fundamental cichlid morphology – position of fins, arrangement of the jaws, nature of the

• scales – remains consistent despite wide variation in body forms

• about 80 cm maximum length; most taxa are in the interval 10-20 cm

• a single nostril on each side of the head

• lateral line usually divided into one anterior upper portion ending below the end of the dorsal-fin base, and a posterior lower portion running along the middle of the caudal
  peduncle (except for genera Teleogramma and Gobiocichla)

• scales in lateral lines may be over 100, usually 20-50

• no bony shelf under eye (subocular shelf absent)

• top jaw highly protrusible

• one dorsal fin, with 7-25 spines (usually 13-16) and 5-30 soft rays; 2-12 (usually 3, rarely more than 5) anal-fin spines

• pelvics under pectoral fin base

Family EMBIOTOCIDAE – Surfperches

• moderately deep bodied

• spiny and soft rayed portions of dorsal fin continuous with each other with 6-11 spines and 9-28 soft rays and with furrow or groove on either side of its base

• cycloid scales

• small mouths

• lateral line continuous and high on body

• caudal fin is forked

• use their pectoral fins for locomotion

Family POMACENTRIDAE – Damselfishes, Clownfishes

• mostly deep-bodied and compressed

• small mouth

• lateral line incomplete or interrupted

• anal fin with two spines (rarely three), single continuous dorsal fin with 9-14 spines and usually 11-18 soft rays

• no palatine teeth

• family name comes from the pointed margin of the opercle

• some family members have serrated opercle spines

• brood benthic eggs (rare for coral reef fishes)

Family LABRIDAE (Wrasses)

• diverse body form, but most cylindrical, usually < 12 cm long

• long dorsal fin

• squared-off or rounded tail, deep caudal peduncle

• commonly have pointed snout

• small to moderate sized mouth with outward-pointing teeth

• cycloid scales

• swim with oscillation of pectoral fins

Family SCARIDAE (Parrotfishes)

• Marine; mainly tropical; occur in Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans.

• Jaw teeth usually coalesced (parrot-like teeth).

• Dorsal fins are continuous with nine spines and ten soft rays.

• Scales large and cycloid

Family STICHAEIDAE (Pricklebacks)

• dorsal and anal fins may join caudal fin. Dorsal fin is usually about twice as long as the
  anal fin

• pelvic fins small, thoracic in position, when present, with one spine and three or four soft
  rays

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Family PHOLIDAE (Gunnels)

• body elongate, compressed

• dorsal fin long, contains only flexible spines

• distance from snout to anal origin greater than half of body length

• pelvics very tiny or absent

• five or six branchiostegal rays

• pyloric caeca absent

• ribs absent

• abdominal vertebrae with parapophyses united, forming hemal arche

Family Gobidae

• small gill openings
• rounded tail
• usually no swim bladder

Family ACANTHURIDAE- surgeonfishes

• scalpel-like spines

• single row of teeth

• large dorsal, anal, and caudal fin

Zanclidae- moorish idol

• they have sharply contrasted vertical bands of white, yellow, and black

• the dorsal fin is long and extends backwards, narrowing into a trailing extension with a
  distinctive white colour

• lack peduncular spine (compared to sturgeonfish)

Family SPHYRAENIDAE- Barracuda

• Body shape is long and slender, like an iron pin.

• Two widely separated dorsal fins.

• They have large scales and a pointed head with a large mouth and long knife-like caniform teeth.

• They can reach up to 2 meters in length.

• Lower jaw projecting

Family SCOMBRIDAE – Mackerels, Tunas

• Smooth skin with small cycloid scales.

• Small second dorsal and anal fins opposite each other.

• Rows of small finlets from second dorsal fin to caudal fin.

• Caudal fin tall and lunate, having a high aspect ratio

Family XIPHIIDAE – Billfishes: Swordfishes, Marlins, Sailfishe

Family CHANNIDAE – Snakeheads

Order PLEURONECTIFORMES – Soles, Flounders, Halibut

• highly compressed body (hence, the common name flatfishes)

• single, long dorsal and anal fins with flexible spines

• pelvic fins small and thoracic or jugular in position

• swim bladder absent, body cavity small and confined to region between pectoral fins and anterior part of anal fin

• scales small and usually ctenoid on the eyed side, cycloid on the underside

Order TETRAODONTIFORMES

• reduced number of bones in skull due to high degree of fusion; skull is thus of a solid construction

• lack lower ribs, so the body is less flexible than in most teleosts; the skin is tough and leathery, forming a rigid enclosure for the body organs

• propulsion is never by body undulation due to the rigid body

• most have some form of protection including inflatable bodies and toxic internal organs (pufferfishes); spine-covered bodies (porcupinefishes); thick skins (molas), or rigid boxlike armour (boxfishes, trunkfishes, and cowfishes)

• small gill openings, usually as holes anterior to pectoral fins

• premaxillae and maxillae fused together, stout teeth, or toothlike beaks

• large pharyngeal teeth that act as secondary crushing devices for further mechanical breakdown of food

Family BALISTIDAE – Triggerfishes

• laterally compressed body

• three dorsal spines, the first of which is stout and erectile; it can be locked into position
  by the second dorsal spine (the trigger). This, together with extension of a pelvic
  spine, enables the fish to lodge itself into crevices from which it cannot easily be dislodged by a predator.

• some species defeat the spiny defense of a sea urchin by blowing a stream of water at it to overturn it, exposing its less protective underside to attack

• tiny mouths; upper jaw usually with four teeth in outer and three in inner series on each premaxillary, developed for crushing rather than nibbling coral polyps

• pelvic fins absent

• scales plate-like, in a regular series on sides of body

Family MONOCANTHIDAE – Filefishes

• usually two dorsal spines, the second usually much smaller or absent

• soft dorsal, anal, and pectoral rays simple

• scales small in regular series

• body prickly or furry to touch

• upper jaw usually with three teeth in outer and two in the inner series on each premaxillary

• 19-31 vertebrae

Family OSTRACIDAE – boxfishes, trunkfishes, cowfishes

• triangular or rectangular in cross section, providing stability when hovering

• stout spines may occur above the eyes and project anteriorly as hornlike extensions (e.g. 'cowfish')

• dorsal and anal fins used for propulsion

• feed mainly on coral polyps

Family MOLIDAE – Ocean Sunfishes

• lack caudal peduncle or fin, giving them a ‘chopped end’ appearance. Instead have a clavus, which is formed by extensions of the dorsal and anal fin rays. The clavus is
  broadly rounded and has low, rounded projections (ossicles), which make up the margin.

• the teeth in each jaw are fused to form a plate, and the mouth is small in comparison to
  the body size

• short-based, long, stiffly held symmetrical dorsal and anal fins set far back on body

• large, secondarily cartilaginous skeleton, thick skin covered in rough protuberance