external fish anatomy

Question 1

cranial

Answer 1

head region

Question 2

caudal

Answer 2

pertaining to the tail region

Question 3

dorsal

Answer 3

towards the top back of the animal

Question 4

ventral

Answer 4

towards the belly of the animal

Question 5

what can body shape in fish indicate?

Answer 5

the natural environment of a species

Question 6

what mouth do top swimmers have?

Answer 6

superior mouth - for gathering floating insects

Question 7

what mouth do mid water swimmers have?

Answer 7

terminal mouths - snatches food as it falls through the water

Question 8

what mouth does a bottom dweller have?

Answer 8

inferior mouths - enables them to get close to the surface

Question 9

teeth

Answer 9

used for holding prey

Question 10

tooth-like projections

Answer 10

helps hold and grind food before it’s swallowed

Question 11

why do deep water fish have large eyes?

Answer 11

allows them to absorbs as much light as possible in the dark

Question 12

nostrils

Answer 12

• chemical traces are detected by sensory cells at the base
• essential in low visability

Question 13

what does skin help with in fish?

Answer 13

helps defend against pathogens - covered in a mucous layer

Question 14

scales

Answer 14

• made of bony material
• protects the body
• points backwards

Question 15

placoid scales

Answer 15

• found in sharks and rays
• resemble small teeth-like projections
• do not increase in size as the fish grows

Question 16

ganoid scales

Answer 16

• mosaic arrangement
• seen on sturgeons and gars

Question 17

ctenoid scales

Answer 17

• spiny comb extensions
• found on perch

Question 18

cycloid scales

Answer 18

• round/oval shaped
• grow as the fish increases in size

Question 19

scutes

Answer 19

• found in armoured catfish
• overlapping bony plates