cartilaginous fish Flashcards
What are the five different types of fish we learn about?
lampreys, paddlefish, sturgeon, gars, and bowfins
primitive fish without jaws or paired fins and have skeleton made out of cartilage
lampreys
can be identified by their disc-shaped mouth and whorls of raspy teeth
lampreys
have seven round hole-like spiracles instead of gills
lampreys
larvae of these fish lack eyes and have slits instead of spiracles
lampreys
oklahoma has how many species of lamprey that are indistinguishable as larvae
2
what are these two species of lamprey
southern brook and chestnut
Oklahoma lampreys spend part of their lives as ______
Larvae
Lampreys feed on _______ ________ and ________
Microscopic life and detritus
Which kind of lamprey becomes parasitic as an adult and attaches itself to a host fish to suck it’s blood
Chestnut
What kind of lamprey does not eat after maturing into an adult and will spawn the following spring, dying shortly after
Southern brook
What fish has a long oar or spoon-like bill?
Paddlefish
Describe the paddlefish skin
Smooth scaleless
Describe the paddlefish tail
Broad shark like
During the spring paddlefish males develop sand papery like bumps called ___________ on their heads and backs
Breeding tubercles
Paddlefish have wide gaping ______ and toothbrush like ________ in the gills
Mouths and bristles
When they swim through the water they have their ______ open to do what?
Mouths// filter feed on small microscopic plankton
Paddlefish bills are covered with ______ that are very sensitive to weak electric currents and help detect their food
Sensors
What two fish don’t look like any other oklahoma fish?
Shovel nose sturgeon and paddlefish
These fish have a triangular, spade shaped head
Shovelnose sturgeon
Shovel nose sturgeon have 4 ________________ in a straight line directly in front of their mouth
Sensory barbels
Shovelnose sturgeons have _________ mouths and their lips have a _________ appearance that isn’t seen on any other oklahoma fish
Extendable// scalloped or cookie cutter
Shovelnose sturgeons have bodies covered with hard, sharp plates called ______
Scutes
__________ is a species of special concern and ARE NOT good to eat
sturgeon
Why have sturgeon population declined?
Dams blocked their migrations and spawning routes
How many gars did we learn about and what are their names?
2// alligator and long nose
Long nose gars are easily identified by what?
Their long, slender, toothy snout
Gars are covered with tough impenetrable diamond-shaped scales called…
Ganoid scales
Long nose gars have find with a ______________ tint
Yellow or orange
What fish has scattered weak spots on its body and faint spots on its head
Longnose gar
Long nose gars are often ________ for long periods of time and can blend well with
Motionless// brushes and branches
Longnose gars have a _______ ______ that allows them to gulp air and survive in water with low dissolved oxygen levels
Primitive lung
What are one of Oklahoma’s fastest growing fish and how fast do they grow
Long nose gar// one inch per week during warm months
What type of gar has a whip-like flagellum and dark lateral stripes
Juvenile gar
Oklahoma’s largest fish is _________ and they can reach______ feet long and nearly_____ pounds
Alligator gar //7 and a half/// 200
What are alligator gars identified by
Short board, alligator like snout
How many rows of large teeth do alligator gars have on their top jaw and what other gar has them
Two// short nose gar but the teeth are smaller
Alligator gars have __________ bodies and paired ___ without spots
Unspotted bodies// fins
Alligator gar are sometimes seen as _________ but in fact they eat mostly ___________ and often feed by __________
“Trash fish” // rough fish // scavenging
In Oklahoma these species are a special concern and their #s are shrinking
Alligator gar
The bowfin is also called a _____ _______ because it has outlived dinosaurs. It mainly feeds on other _____ and _________
“Living fossil” // fish // crayfish
What fish has a long, thick, eel-like appearance with a _______ tail and a long, undulating dorsal reaching nearly to its tail
Bowfin // rounded
The bowfin head is _____ and ___________ with 2 small appendages called ______ on the upper jaw near its nostrils
Blunt // snake-like // nares
The bowfin has ________ jaws and ________ teeth
Strong // sharp
The bowfin is strictly a ________ species and is often found in heavy __________
Lowland // vegetation
In Oklahoma, bowfins are found mainly in southern proportions of….
Choctaw and McCurtain counties
A flathead is a large ________ _______.
Growing catfish
What fish has a broad, unforked, square tail, a large mouth spanning the width of the head, mottled coloration and a flat, sloping head
Flathead catfish
The flathead catfish can adjust _________ to match it’s ___________
Coloration // surroundings
This fish can be called “yellow cat” “mud cat” or “Opelousas catfish”
Flathead catfish
A flathead spawns in ______ with males aggressively guarding the eggs and fry
Cavities
The flathead is a strict _________ and will eat any live food that can fit in its mouth
Canivore
The black bullhead looks like yellow bullheads but can be distinguished by …….
Dark chin whiskers and 17-21 anal fin rays
Is a black bullhead’s tail square or forked
Square
The name “mudcat” can also refer to …
Black bullheads
A mature black bullhead will have a _______ ________ at the base of its tail
White crescent
Black bullheads are often reported to lack ________ __________ fins
Serrated pectoral
The most common and widespread catfish in oklahoma
Channel catfish
Where can channel catfish be found
Ponds, lakes, rivers, streams
The channel catfish is quite ________ and does well in which kind of waters? Clear or turbid
Adaptable // both clear and turbid waters
Young channel catfish can be easily identified by their ………………….. On their sides
Black spots or speckles
Channel catfish often lack ______ but look like a __________
Spots // blue catfish
The anal fin of a channel catfish has more of a _________ fin than in a blue catfish
Rounded
Around how many rays does a channel catfish contain?
24-29
The appearance of a channel catfish depends on what 5 things
Age, sex, time of year, water clarity, and if it lives in calm or flowing water
The largest catfish in North America is what?
Blue catfish
The blue catfish has what type of tail?
Deeply forked
The blue catfish lacks ______ on its body
Spots
This fish is often deep bodied with long, steeply sloping foreheads that can give it a “hump-back” appearance
Blue catfish
The blue catfish anal fin is _______ and ___________ than in a channel catfish
Longer // straighter
The color of the blue catfish (light or dark) depends on what 3 things
Habitat, gender, and time of year
The blue catfish can often be caught in __________ water
Shallow
Striped bass have __ separate dorsal fins and about _ to _ black lines along their sides
Two // six to eight
Most of the lines on a striped bass are _________ and ________
Straight and unbroken
What fish has two distinct, parallel tooth patches
Striped bass
Striped bass thrive in what areas?
Lake Texoma, Red and Arkansas Rivers
Striped bass can lives their whole lives in __________
Freshwater
White bass look very similar to what other fish? And what is similar
Striped bass // 2 separate dorsal fins and black lines along the sides
What is unique about white bass?
Conjoined tooth patch with a weak division between the two sides
The line going towards the belly of the white bass become….
Fewer or less pronounced
What is Oklahoma’s state fish?
White bass
