Pictures of Fishes

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Ratfish
The ratfish is a member of a species of deep-water fish related to sharks. The ratfish is characterized by a long tail and a poisonous spine in front of the dorsal fin.







Rosy Barbel
This fish of the genus Barbus, known as the rosy barbel, swims in a clear freshwater stream amidst the aquatic plants and roots on which it feeds. Part of the carp family, barbels live at the bottom of rivers or streams during the day and use their whiskerlike feelers, called barbels, to find food at dusk. Several species of barbels exist in western Asia and central and southern Europe, where the fish is prized in sports fishing.



Sawfish
Although sharklike in appearance, sawfish are actually a type of ray and are distinguished by the presence of gill openings on the lower surface of the head rather than on the sides of the head as in sharks. The sawfish snout is elongated into a broad, flat sword with opposing rows of large teeth. When feeding, the sawfish thrashes the saw from side to side, wounding and killing small fish. Sawfish are common in the shallow coastal waters of tropical seas and can ascend moderate distances up freshwater rivers.

Sea Horse
The Hippocampus hudonius, also known as the common sea horse, is the largest of over 24 species of sea horses. Sea horses swim fastest in the horizontal position, but can also propel themselves while remaining vertical. Sea horses, like pipefish, have unusual breeding habits. Following mating, a female sea horse deposits her eggs in a brood pouch located on the abdomen of the male sea horse, who then takes care of the eggs until they hatch.





Skipjack Tuna
Skipjack, small, fast-swimming tuna, are distinguished by the dark, horizontal lines found on their streamlined, torpedo-shaped bodies.





Spiny Puffer
The spiny puffer, or burrfish, has a unique defensive mechanism that protects it from predators. When threatened, the spiny puffer inflates its body with water or air, which causes the numerous long spines covering the body to be erected. The inflated body and the sharp spines make it difficult for a predator to ingest the puffer. After the danger has passed, the puffer slowly deflates itself and resumes a more normal shape.



Squirrelfish
Squirrelfish are found in coral reefs throughout the tropics. They are predators, primarily eating small invertebrates such as worms, snails, and shrimp. Squirrelfish are nocturnal; at night their large eyes help them see and their reddish color helps to camouflage them from predators. During the day, they hide in crevices or caves.

Tilapia
Fishes of the genus Tilapia are popular as both aquarium and food fishes. Some species of tilapia are mouth brooders, protecting unhatched eggs and newly hatched young by carrying the eggs and young in their mouths. Usually the female carries the offspring, but in a few species the male also participates in mouth brooding.




White Mullet
The white mullet, commonly found in coastal marine waters and estuaries in temperate and tropical North and Central America, is one of approximately 95 species of mullets found worldwide. White mullets filter plankton and fine particles of organic material from the water and bottom sediments with their fine, sievelike gill rakers.




Winter Flounder
The winter flounder belongs to a group of marine fish known as flatfish. Its flattened body, with both eyes on the same side of the head, and ability to change its body coloration to match that of the immediate background make the winter flounder well adapted for a bottom-dwelling existence.

Pictures of Fishes

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Great White Shark
The great white shark, largest of the strictly carnivorous sharks, is found in tropical and temperate oceans and seas worldwide. Great white sharks use hearing, smell, sight, taste, touch, and electrical perception to locate food.




Hammerhead Shark
The hammerhead shark, distinguished by the lateral expansion of the head into a hammer-shaped structure, is perhaps the most easily recognized shark. The great hammerhead roams tropical and subtropical seas feeding on stingrays, bony fish, and invertebrates. In this photo the hammerhead’s eye is visible at the tip of the hammer-shaped head structure.

Hi-Hat Drumfish
This drumfish’s vivid black and white stripes, while popular with aquarium owners, do little to attract other drumfish. Instead, potential mates swimming out of visible range detect the fish’s far-reaching “knocking” and “drumming” noises, vibrations produced by tightening the muscles of the swim bladder. This tropical Atlantic species gets its name from its tall dorsal fin.





Malawi Blue Cichlid
The Malawi blue cichlid is found in Lake Malawi (also called Lake Nyasa) in eastern Africa. It engages in an elaborate courtship and afterwards provides extensive care for the developing eggs and newly hatched fry. The Malawi blue cichlid, along with dozens of other species of brilliantly colored cichlids from the great lakes of eastern Africa, is prized as an aquarium fish.





Minnow Family
The dace (top) and the chub (bottom) are members of the minnow family. Ranging across North America and Eurasia, the minnow family represents the most important group of freshwater forage fish. All minnows lack teeth in the upper and lower jaws. When a minnow is eaten or injured by a predator, the fish releases a substance into the water, warning other minnows of the danger.




Mosaic Moray Eel
Moray eels inhabit tropical seas where they stalk prey from hidden spots, such as holes in coral reefs. Their cavernous mouths, powerful jaws, and needle-sharp teeth enable eels to capture and eat their prey, mainly other fish and mollusks.







Mudskipper
The fish known as the mudskipper can propel itself over land by moving its pectoral fins. Mudskippers can remain out of water for several days by breathing air trapped in highly vascularized cavities in the mouth and gill chambers. They use this special ability to feed on the rich supply of crustaceans present in the mud of mangrove swamps and estuaries. Mudskippers inhabit the tropical coastal regions in the Indian and Pacific oceans.




Pacific Hagfish
The Pacific hagfish belongs to a group of fish known as the agnathans, considered the most primitive of the living fish. The hagfish, which is blind, lacks true jaws and instead has a sucking disc capable of attaching to the sides of larger fishes. Following attachment, the hagfish drills a small hole into the side of the host fish with its tongue and draws out the body fluids and blood. The hagfish also lacks scales and a sympathetic nervous system.

Panther Grouper
The panther grouper, so named because of its spotted appearance, is a member of the grouper family. This fish has a remarkably large mouth cavity and is able to eat sizeable prey, including fish and invertebrates. Although the color pattern seems quite conspicuous against a light-colored background, it makes the panther grouper inconspicuous against the vibrant background of the coral reef.



Piranha
There are at least two dozen species of South American tropical rain forest fish that are grouped together under the name of piranha. Ranging in size from under 15 cm (6 in) to nearly 60 cm (24 in), the piranha is perhaps the most feared of all fish in the rain forest due to the razor-sharp teeth along the leading edge of both jaws. Although some species are strictly carnivorous, not all are considered dangerous to man.

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Pictures of Fishes

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African Lungfish
The African lungfish is one of three species of lungfish. This lungfish is equipped with both a lung and rudimentary gills. During the dry season, the African lungfish is able to survive by curling itself into a tight ball with its tail covering the eyes. Mud adheres to the body mucous, forming an impervious casing. The lungfish then becomes dormant, or estivates, until the rainy season again fills the pool, softens the mud casing, and releases the fish.

Betta
The betta, or Siamese fighting fish, is native to Southeast Asia. It has been extensively cultured for the aquarium trade. Cultured bettas have long, flowing fins and brilliant colors. They must periodically swim to the surface to capture air in a specialized structure called a labyrinth organ. By breathing atmospheric oxygen, bettas are able to inhabit oxygen-poor waters where few other fish can survive.



Bicolor Parrot Fish
Parrot fish have the unusual ability to change gender. This female bicolor parrot fish may have been a male in the past, or may transform into a male soon. Parrot fish use their strong jaws to break off small pieces of coral and graze on algae growing among the coral.



Brown Bullhead
Valued for food and sport, the brown bullhead, a North American species of catfish, lives in many freshwater streams in the eastern United States. Usually measuring less than 46 cm (18 in) long, the brown bullhead exhibits the typical whiskerlike feelers that give the catfish its name. The brown bullhead is considered the most commercially important of all catfish.




Butterfly Fish
The butterfly fish is a member of the order Perciformes, the largest order of bony fishes. Hundreds of species of butterfly fish are found on coral reefs around the world. Fast and flexible, they can dart quickly into coral crevices to avoid predators and chase after food items. Most species of butterfly fish are brightly colored and patterned, with one or more false eyespots on the fins. This type of coloration serves to disrupt the outline of the body against the background of the coral reef, making it difficult for predators to detect them.

Chain Moray
The chain moray, a coral reef dweller, is a member of the eel family, fish that occasionally lack fins and whose gill openings are reduced to small circular openings. Secretive by nature, the chain morays usually inhabit a coral cave or crevice and wait for unsuspecting fish and invertebrates, which they capture with their sharp teeth and powerful jaws.




Common Sunfish
The common sunfish, a close relative of the bluegill sunfish, largemouth bass, and smallmouth bass, is a small, spiny-rayed, freshwater fish with a bright orange tip at the end of its gill flap. Native to drainage basins east of the Rocky Mountains, this sunfish is popular with young anglers.






Cookie-Cutter Shark
The cookie-cutter shark is named for the cookie-shaped bites that it takes out of its prey. Using special lips modified for sucking and a movable tongue that retracts to form suction, the cookie-cutter attaches itself to the side of prey. It then presses its sharp teeth into the prey’s flesh and uses a twisting motion to cut and remove a round plug of flesh. Even though the cookie-cutter is one of the smallest species of sharks, it preys on large animals such as whales, dolphins, and sharks, and has even bitten into submarines.


Domestic Goldfish
The numerous varieties of domestic goldfish have all come from the wild goldfish of eastern Asia. Domestic goldfish have been bred for centuries, especially in Japan and China, and have adapted to fresh waters around the world. Goldfish can be extremely long-lived and have become popular as domestic pets.





French Angelfish
The French angelfish is a common inhabitant of the coral reef community. The angelfish is easily identified by its large dorsal and anal fins and the prominent vertical yellow stripes along the sides of its body.

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