What are the fishes

Many people like to eat fish, but not many people know about the types of fish, and even fewer can name them. There are so many types of fish. Some people may ask questions such as whether sharks are fish. In addition to being eaten, fish can also be exhibited as works of art for others to see. We have all been to an aquarium. Whenever we walk into an aquarium, we always see all kinds of fish.

Some people specialize in fish research. They know more clearly about the fish in the world, the era in which they lived, their lifestyles, species, etc. The types and numbers of fish in the ocean are huge, and their characteristics are also different. Today I will introduce to you what kinds of fish there are.

Fish are the lowest group of vertebrates. In my country's waters, 3,023 species of marine fish have been recorded so far, including 237 species of cartilaginous fish and 2,786 species of bony fish, accounting for about 1/7 of all marine species in my country. Therefore, marine fish constitute an important basis for my country's marine aquatic products.

The main respiratory organs of fish living in water are gills. When a fish leaves the water, its gill filaments dry up and stick together, it stops breathing and its life stops. However, there is a kind of mudskipper that can adapt to an amphibious life living along the coast of our country.

The mudskipper is about 10 cm long, slightly laterally flattened, with eyes on the top of its head like frog eyes, and a wide field of vision. Its gill cavity is large and the gill cover is sealed, which can store a large amount of air. The intracavitary epidermis is covered with a network of blood vessels, which plays a role in respiratory function. Its skin is also covered with blood vessels, and the blood can directly exchange gases with the air through the extremely thin skin. In addition to serving as a fin in water, its tail fin also serves as an auxiliary respiratory organ. These unique physiological phenomena enable them to leave the water and live in the air for a long time. In addition, the left and right pelvic fins of the mudskipper are combined into a suction cup, which can attach to other objects. The well-developed pectoral fins are arm-shaped, very similar to the limbs of higher animals. When encountering an enemy, its movement speed is faster than a human walking. Mudskippers living in tropical areas often jump around on the beach to catch food during low tide, and prefer to climb onto the roots of mangroves to catch insects to eat. Therefore, people call it "the tree-climbing fish".

Magical manta ray

"Devil fish" is a huge tropical fish, its scientific name is Manta ray. Its size and strength often scare divers, because if it gets angry, it can break people's bones and kill them with just a flap of its powerful wings. That's why people call it "devil fish". Sometimes manta rays use their head fins to hang themselves on the anchor chain of a small boat, dragging the boat quickly around on the sea, causing fishermen to mistakenly believe that it is the "devil" causing trouble, but in fact it is a prank by the manta ray.

"Devil fish" like to swim in groups, sometimes staying on the seabed, and sometimes rising to the surface of the sea in pairs of males and females. During the breeding season, manta rays sometimes slap the water's surface with their fins, leap into the air, and even jump out of the water, "gliding" in the air more than one meter above the water. When they fall into the water, the sound is like a cannon, which can be heard for miles and is very spectacular.

Manta rays may look intimidating, but they are actually quite peaceful, feeding only on crustaceans or schools of small fish and shrimp. There are two fleshy feet on its head, which are its cephalic fins. The cephalic fins protrude forward and can rotate freely. The manta ray uses this pair of cephalic fins to drive food and push it into its mouth to swallow.

Fish that can generate electricity and emit radio waves

In the fish kingdom, there is a type of fish that can generate electricity or emit radio waves. Their methods of hunting and defending against enemies are very ingenious.

In the vast ocean live electric rays that can generate electricity. Their generators are derived from the mutation of gill muscles. There is a large oval honeycomb-shaped generator on each side at the back of the head and inner side of the pectoral fins on the shoulders. The most basic structure of each power generating organ is a piece of small plates - electric plates (fibrous tissue). About 40 electric plates overlap up and down to form hexagonal columnar tubes. There are 600 tubes on each side, which are called electric tubes. It is filled with gelatinous substance, so it appears translucent milky white to the naked eye, which is obviously different from the surrounding pink muscles. Each electrode has a negative pole on one side with nerve endings and a positive pole on the other side. The direction of current is from ventral to dorsal. The discharge capacity is 70 volts to 80 volts, sometimes reaching 100 volts, and it discharges 150 times per second. When people dissected electric rays, they found intact eels, flounders and salmon in their stomachs. This was because the electric rays used electric discharges to stun the active fish and then swallowed them. Therefore, electric rays are known as "undersea electricians".

In addition to electric rays, sting rays, star rays, He's rays, Chinese fan rays, etc. all have weaker electric organs. The stargazer's generator is located behind the eye, is oval in shape, and can generate up to 50 volts of electricity. And electric eels.

Will make a sound

Most people think that all fish are dumb, but this is obviously not true. Many fish make a variety of amazing sounds. For example: Conger eels make "barking" sounds; the cry of electric catfish is like an angry cat; boxfish can make dog barking sounds; the cry of bream sometimes sounds like a pig, sometimes like a groan, and sometimes like snoring; seahorses make a monotonous sound like a drum. Totoaba fish are known for their calls, which can sound like creaking, drumming, the flight of hummingbirds, meows and whistles. Their calls are particularly common during the reproductive period, when they are used to gather in groups. Most of the sounds made by fish are caused by bone friction and swim bladder contraction. Some are made by breathing or anal discharge, etc. Experienced fishermen can judge the size of a school of fish based on the sound they make so they can cast their nets to catch fish. So do elephantnose fish.

Mandarin duck butterfly fish

When people see butterflies flying on land, they will praise them endlessly. The butterfly fish gets its name because this fish looks like a beautiful butterfly. If people were to choose the most beautiful fish among coral reef fish, the butterfly fish would be the first choice, with the most gorgeous colors and fascinating features.

Butterflyfish is a tropical fish. It is a small coral reef fish that lives in warm waters near the coast. The largest can exceed 30 cm, such as the fine-lined butterflyfish. The butterfly fish's laterally flattened body is suitable for shuttling back and forth among the coral reefs. They can disappear quickly and agilely in the coral branches or rock crevices. The butterfly fish has a long snout and a small mouth, which is suitable for reaching into coral caves to catch invertebrates.

Butterfly fish live in colorful coral reefs and have a range of abilities to adapt to the environment. Their bright body color can change with the surrounding environment. The butterfly fish has a large number of pigment cells on its body surface that can expand or contract under the control of the nervous system, making the body surface appear in different colors. It usually takes several minutes for a butterfly fish to change its body color, but for some it only takes a few seconds.

Many butterfly fish have extremely clever camouflage. They often hide their real eyes in the black stripes across the head, leaving a very conspicuous "false eye" on the caudal peduncle or behind the dorsal fin, which often confuses predators by mistaking it for their head. When the enemy attacks its "false eye", the butterfly fish quickly swings its sword fins and escapes.

Butterfly fish are loyal and devoted in love. Most of them live in pairs, like terrestrial mandarin ducks. They swim and play in pairs in the coral reefs and are always inseparable. When one is feeding, the other is on guard around it. Butterfly fish are very popular among ornamental fish enthusiasts in my country because of their bright colors. They are kept in large numbers in aquariums along the coast.

There are countless species of fish. Some of them are eaten by people, while others are displayed in aquariums for people to appreciate. In short, there are many types of fish, their development history is very long, and the underwater world is also very exciting. After reading this article, you must have learned a lot about fish.