The remora, sometimes called suckerfish or sharksucker, is any of a family (Echeneidae) of ray-finned fish in the order Carangiformes. Depending on species, they grow to 30–110 cm (12–43 in) long. Their distinctive first dorsal fins take the form of a modified oval, sucker-like organ with slat-like structures that open and close to create suction and take a firm hold against the skin of larger marine animals. The disk is made up of stout, flexible membranes that can be raised and lowered to generate suction. By sliding backward, the remora can increase the suction, or it can release itself by swimming forward. Remoras sometimes attach to small boats, and have been observed attaching to divers as well. They swim well on their own, with a sinuous, or curved, motion.
Suckerfish or sucker may refer to:
The whalesucker is a species of remora in the family Echeneidae, so named because it attaches itself exclusively to cetaceans. It is found worldwide in tropical and warm waters; in the Gulf of Mexico and western Atlantic Ocean, it occurs from Texas to Brazil, and in the eastern Pacific Ocean, it occurs from Vancouver Island to Chile. It is the rarest member of the remora family, though this may reflect more the uncommon collection of cetaceans in the wild rather than the whalesucker's actual abundance.
The slender suckerfish or lousefish is a rare species of remora found around the world in tropical and subtropical seas, in areas like the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Ocean, from depths from 1 to 100 meters deep.
The spearfish remora is a species of remora with a worldwide distribution in tropical and subtropical seas. Remoras attach themselves to other fish with a sucker on the head and this fish is almost exclusively found living on billfishes or swordfishes, and sometimes on sharks.
The Australian weasel shark is an uncommon species of ground shark in the family Hemigaleidae. It inhabits shallow waters off northern Australia to a depth of 170 m (560 ft); smaller sharks frequent sand and seagrass habitat and shift to coral reefs as they grow older. A slim, drab species reaching a length of 1.1 m (3.6 ft), it has sickle-shaped fins with dark tips on the second dorsal fin and caudal fin upper lobe. Its upper teeth are broad with strong serrations only on the trailing edge. The lateral line along each side is prominent and exhibits a downward curve below the second dorsal fin.
Eleutheronema tetradactylum, the fourfinger threadfin, known as ranwas in Pakistan, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a threadfin from the family Polynemidae which occurs in the Indian and western Pacific Ocean.
The popeye catalufa, also known as the bigeye soldierfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish in the family Priacanthidae, the bigeyes. This fish has an overall dusky orange to red colour with white markings. The dorsal fin appears feathery while rest of fins have black margins. It occurs in the eastern Pacific, where it is found from Oregon to Chile. It occasionally makes its way into the aquarium trade. It grows to a size of 34 centimetres (13 in) in length. This species is nocturnal and shy, preferring deeper waters off islands. It has been recorded associating with squirrelfishes and cardinalfishes but the popeye catalufa goes as deep as 76 metres (249 ft), deeper than its associated species. This species has been recorded from rocky habitats at depths of less than 5 metres (16 ft) to over 100 metres (330 ft). It is a carnivorous species and, when kept in captivity, is known to feed on worms, crustaceans and brittle stars.
The brownsnout spookfish or brown-snout spookfish is a species of barreleye in the family Opisthoproctidae. It and the glasshead barreleye fish are the only vertebrates known to employ a mirror, in addition to a lens, to focus an image in its eyes. This species probably has a worldwide tropical and temperate distribution; in the Atlantic Ocean it is known from Bermuda, the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the Gulf of Mexico, and in the Pacific Ocean it is known from the California Current region and the South China Sea. It is found in the mesopelagic and bathypelagic zones at a depth of 500–2,400 meters (1,600–7,900 ft), but usually occurs below 1,000 meters. In the Gulf of Mexico it is found shallower, at 310–460 meters (1,020–1,510 ft).
The common remora is a pelagic marine fish belonging to the family Echeneidae. The dorsal fin, which has 22 to 26 soft rays, acts as a suction cup, creating a vacuum to allow the fish to attach to larger marine animals, such as whales, dolphins, sharks, and sea turtles.
The marlin sucker or spear-fish remora is a species of remora found all over the world in tropical and temperate seas. It can reach up to 40
A sucker in zoology is a specialised attachment organ of an animal. It acts as an adhesion device in parasitic worms, several flatworms, cephalopods, certain fishes, amphibians, and bats. It is a muscular structure for suction on a host or substrate. In parasitic annelids, flatworms and roundworms, suckers are the organs of attachment to the host tissues. In tapeworms and flukes, they are a parasitic adaptation for attachment on the internal tissues of the host, such as intestines and blood vessels. In roundworms and flatworms they serve as attachment between individuals particularly during mating. In annelids, a sucker can be both a functional mouth and a locomotory organ. The structure and number of suckers are often used as basic taxonomic diagnosis between different species, since they are unique in each species. In tapeworms there are two distinct classes of suckers, namely "bothridia" for true suckers, and "bothria" for false suckers. In digeneal flukes there are usually an oral sucker at the mouth and a ventral sucker posterior to the mouth. Roundworms have their sucker just in front of the anus; hence it is often called a pre-anal sucker.
The live sharksucker or slender sharksucker is a species of marine fish in the family Echeneidae, the remoras.
The whitefin sharksucker or short-disk sharksucker, is a species of remora native to subtropical waters of the western Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea. This fish can reach a length of 75 centimetres (30 in) TL though most fish do not exceed 50 centimetres (20 in) TL. It can be free-swimming, or can attach itself to a host fish or turtle by means of a sucker on the back of the head.
Jaydia queketti, the spotfin cardinal or signal cardinalfish, is a species of ray-finned fish from the Indian Ocean, it is a member of the family Apogonidae. It has colonised the eastern Mediterranean Sea by way of the Suez Canal since 2004.
Zaniolepis frenata, also known as the shortspine combfish, is a species of ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zaniolepididae.The species occurs in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
Pelvic fins or ventral fins are paired fins located on the ventral (belly) surface of fish, and are the lower of the only two sets of paired fins. The pelvic fins are homologous to the hindlimbs of tetrapods, which evolved from lobe-finned fish during the Middle Devonian.
Exocoetus obtusirostris, commonly known as the oceanic two-wing flyingfish or the blunt-snouted flyingfish, is a species of ray-finned fish native to the tropical and subtropical western Atlantic Ocean. It has the ability to glide above the surface of the water to escape from predators.
Pholidapus is a monotypic genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Stichaeidae, the pricklebacks and shannies. Its only species is Pholidapus dybowskii which is found in the northwestern Pacific Ocean.
The threadfin sculpin is a fish, mostly found in the Pacific waters of North America. A large, deep-water sculpin of the family Cottidae, it occurs in the North Pacific Ocean, from Chirikof Island in the western Gulf of Alaska to Point Loma and Cortez Bank, southern California, USA. Found at depths below 122 ft, and as deep as 2624 ft, little is known about this reclusive species.
