Coelacanths are an ancient group of lobe-finned fish (Sarcopterygii) in the class Actinistia. As sarcopterygians, they are more closely related to lungfish and tetrapods than to ray-finned fish.
Perch is a common name for freshwater fish from the genus Perca, which belongs to the family Percidae of the large order Perciformes. The name comes from Greek: πέρκη, romanized: perke, meaning the type species of this genus, the European perch.
Gars are an ancient group of ray-finned fish in the family Lepisosteidae. They comprise seven living species of fish in two genera that inhabit fresh, brackish, and occasionally marine waters of eastern North America, Central America and Cuba in the Caribbean, though extinct members of the family were more widespread. They are the only surviving members of the Ginglymodi, a clade of fish which first appeared during the Triassic, over 240 million years ago, and are one of only two surviving groups of holosteian fish, alongside the bowfins, which have a similar distribution.
The ocean sunfish or common mola is one of the largest bony fish in the world. It is the type species of the genus Mola, and one of five extant species in the family Molidae. It was once misidentified as the heaviest bony fish, which was actually a different and closely related species of sunfish, Mola alexandrini. Adults typically weigh between 247 and 1,000 kg. It is native to tropical and temperate waters around the world. It resembles a fish head without a tail, and its main body is flattened laterally. Sunfish can be as tall as they are long when their dorsal and ventral fins are extended.
The long-finned pilot whale, or pothead whale (Globicephalamelas) is a large species of oceanic dolphin. It shares the genus Globicephala with the short-finned pilot whale. Long-finned pilot whales are known as such because of their unusually long pectoral fins.
Pilot whales are cetaceans belonging to the genus Globicephala. The two extant species are the long-finned pilot whale and the short-finned pilot whale. The two are not readily distinguishable at sea, and analysis of the skulls is the best way to distinguish between the species. Between the two species, they range nearly worldwide, with long-finned pilot whales living in colder waters and short-finned pilot whales living in tropical and subtropical waters. Pilot whales are among the largest of the oceanic dolphins, exceeded in size only by the orca. They and other large members of the dolphin family are also known as blackfish.
A barracuda is a large, predatory, ray-finned fish known for its fearsome appearance and ferocious behaviour. The barracuda is a saltwater fish of the genus Sphyraena, the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which was named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque in 1815. It is found in tropical and subtropical oceans worldwide ranging from the eastern border of the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea, on its western border the Caribbean Sea, and in tropical areas of the Pacific Ocean. Barracudas reside near the top of the water and near coral reefs and sea grasses. Barracudas are targeted by sport-fishing enthusiasts.
The clipper barb or Congo barb is a freshwater and brackish tropical fish belonging to the minnow family (Cyprinidae). Its native habitat is from Côte d'Ivoire through the Chad Basin to Nigeria and Cameroon. It was originally described as Barbus callipterus by Boulenger in 1907.
The spiny dogfish, spurdog, mud shark, or piked dogfish is one of the best known species of the Squalidae (dogfish) family of sharks, which is part of the Squaliformes order.
The school shark is a houndshark of the family Triakidae, and the only member of the genus Galeorhinus. Common names also include tope, tope shark, snapper shark, and soupfin shark. It is found worldwide in temperate seas at depths down to about 800 m (2,600 ft). It can grow to nearly 2 m long. It feeds both in midwater and near the seabed, and its reproduction is ovoviviparous. This shark is caught in fisheries for its flesh, its fins, and its liver, which has a very high vitamin A content. The IUCN has classified this species as critically endangered in its Red List of Threatened Species.
The Bahamas sawshark, Pristiophorus schroederi, is a sawshark of the family Pristiophoridae, found in the western Central Atlantic Ocean from the Bahamas and Cuba at depths of between 400 and 1,000 m. These sharks are at least 80 cm long.
Tiktaalik is a monospecific genus of extinct sarcopterygian from the Late Devonian Period, about 375 Mya, having many features akin to those of tetrapods. Tiktaalik is estimated to have had a total length of 1.25–2.75 metres (4.1–9.0 ft) based on various specimens.
The prickly dogfish is a poorly known species of dogfish shark in the family Oxynotidae, inhabiting temperate Australian and New Zealand waters. Reaching a length of 75 cm (30 in), this brown to gray shark has a very thick body with a prominent "humpback" and extremely rough skin. It is further characterized by two enormous, sail-like dorsal fins placed relatively close together. Both dorsal fins have a spine embedded mostly within the fleshy leading portion of the fin; the first dorsal spine is tilted forward.
The crocodile shark is a species of mackerel shark and the only extant member of the family Pseudocarchariidae. A specialized inhabitant of the mesopelagic zone, the crocodile shark can be found worldwide in tropical waters from the surface to a depth of 590 m (1,940 ft). It performs a diel vertical migration, staying below a depth of 200 m (660 ft) during the day and ascending into shallower water at night to feed. Typically measuring only 1 m (3.3 ft) in length, the crocodile shark is the smallest living mackerel shark. It can be distinguished by its elongated cigar-shaped body, extremely large eyes, and relatively small fins.
The northern river shark or New Guinea river shark is a species of requiem shark, in the family Carcharhinidae, found in scattered tidal rivers and associated coastal waters in northern Australia and in Papua New Guinea. This species inhabits areas with poor visibility, soft bottoms, and large tides, with immature sharks ranging into fresh and brackish water. It is similar to other river sharks in having a stocky grey body with a high back, tiny eyes, and broad fins. It measures up to 2.5 m (8.2 ft) long.
Pterois miles, the devil firefish or common lionfish, is a species of ray-finned fish native to the western Indo-Pacific region. It is frequently confused with its close relative, the red lionfish. The scientific name is from Greek pteron, meaning "wing", and Latin miles, meaning "soldier".
The southern Mandarin dogfish is a species of Mandarin dogfish shark in the genus Cirrhigaleus. It was distinguished from Cirrhigaleus barbifer, which lives in the North Pacific, on an expedition in the coral reefs near Australia in 2007. It is now known to live in the temperate waters in south-eastern Australia and from the Bay of Plenty region in New Zealand, at depths of 146–640 metres.
Poecilocharax is a genus of South American darters in the family Crenuchidae from the Amazon, Orinoco and Potaro basins. There are currently four described species in this genus.
Squatina mapama is a species of angelshark found in the Caribbean. It was described by Douglas J. Long, David A. Ebert, Jose Tavera, Arturo Acero Pizarro, and David Ross Robertson in December 2021.
Poecilocharax rhizophilus is a species of fish discovered alongside Poecilocharax callipterus.
