Fish

Question 1

Agnatha

Answer 1

jawless fish ex: hagfish, lampreys

Question 2

Chondrichthyes

Answer 2

cartilaginous fish ex: sharks, rays

Question 3

Osteichthyes

Answer 3

“bony fish”, ex: trout, salmon, goldfish

Question 4

Temperate freshwater fish

Answer 4

goldfish, koi

Question 5

Tropical freshwater fish

Answer 5

guppies, cichlids, tetras

Question 6

Tropical saltwater fish

Answer 6

clownfish

Question 7

Flagellates

Answer 7

Hexamita, Spironucleus
-infest skin, gills, muscle & GI tract
-”hole-in-the-head disease”
-diagnosis: skin scrape, gill biopsy
-treated with metronidazole

Question 8

Cilliates

Answer 8

Ichthyophthirius multifilis
-aka Ich, ick or white spot
-infects skin & gills causing white cottony lesions
-diagnosis: skin scrape, gill biopsy
-treat tank with malachite green

Question 9

Husbandry related disease

Answer 9

Poor Water Quality: high ammonia or nitrite, low oxygenation, crowding
-symptoms: lethargy, gasping for air at surface, hemorrhage in fins, ragged fins
*Dropsy: edema of the coelom, multiple causes
-symptoms: “pine cone” appearance
*Scoliosis: curvature of spine; bacterial infection, poor nutrition, trauma, genetics
*Swim bladder disease: inability to dive, tipped to 1 side
-caused by blockage in tube between stomach & swim bladder, infection, trauma
-treatment: thawed frozen peas (changes amount of gas in GI tract) for blockage, antibiotics for infection
-can live this way as long as they can eat

Question 10

Venipuncture

Answer 10

caudal tail vein

Question 11

Injection sites:

Answer 11

-IM: epaxial muscles
-ICe: intracoelomic, ventrally between pectoral & pelvic fins

Question 12

Medicated baths;

Answer 12

-medication is dissolved into water, fish is placed in the medicated water for a certain amount of time daily. Easiest with small fish.

Question 13

-gill biopsy:

Answer 13

awake or under sedation, checking for parasites & bacteria

Question 14

skin scrape & touch smears

Answer 14

checking for parasites & bacteria

Question 15

commercially available anesthetic powder.

Answer 15

MS-222
It is acidic when mixed, sodium bicarbonate is added to buffer the solution to an appropriate pH for the species.

Question 16

Blood flow through heart and gills

Answer 16

Sinus venosus
Atria
Ventricle
Bulbus arterios

ventral aortagillsdorsal aortaoxygenated blood to body

Question 17

dorsal fin

Answer 17

single fin, used to stabilize fish during swimming; sometimes used in courtship (guppies)

Question 18

-pectoral fin

Answer 18

paired, just below operculae, used for stopping & turning; sometimes used for “walking” (mud puppies)

Question 19

pelvic fin

Answer 19

paired, behind the pectoral fins, also used for stopping & turning; sometimes develop into sucker (gobi)

Question 20

-anal fin

Answer 20

single fin, ventral caudal to cloaca, stabilizes fish; can be modified in male guppies to allow internal fertilization

Question 21

-caudal fin

Answer 21

: single fin, “tail”, used for propulsion; only fin controlled by the spine

Question 22

Swim Bladder

Answer 22

*Gas filled organ, which aids in buoyancy. Two ways for air to get into the bladder:
-connection
-gas gland

Question 23

replicate their natural environment:
Requirements

Answer 23

natural temperature
-salinity
-communal vs aggressive fish
-hiding places: plants, pots; should be smooth to avoid damaging scales & skin
*All tanks need a filtration system, temperature gauge +/- water heater & aeration (pump to add air into waterdissolved oxygen available for fish)

Question 24

Forms of food

Answer 24

Pelleted or flaked: depends on the species & fish preferences, usually a complete diet
-Freeze dried: easy to store, not usually a complete diet
-Frozen: usually whole fish, shrimp or worms in a cube
-Live: whole foods (fish, worms), usually complete diet, can create increased waste in the tank

Question 25

Water Quality Checks Include

Answer 25

Owners should be checking pH, temperature, ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, hardness & alkalinity

Question 26

Nitrogen Cycle

Answer 26

Fish excrete ammonia as their waste product, which is toxic in high levels.
*Nitrosomas, a type of nitrogen fixing bacteria, breaks down the ammonia into nitrite, which is also toxic to fish.
*Nitrobacter, another type of nitrogen fixing bacteria, breaks down the nitrite to nitrate, which fish can tolerate better.
*Anaerobic bacteria then turn the nitrate into nitrogen gas which evaporates from the tank.