Fish are gill-bearing aquatic craniate animals that lack limbs with digits. They form a sister group to the tunicates, together forming the olfactores. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Tetrapods emerged within lobe-finned fishes, so cladistically they are fish as well. However, traditionally fish are rendered paraphyletic by excluding the tetrapods (i.e., the amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals which all descended from within the same ancestry). Because in this manner the term "fish" is defined negatively as a paraphyletic group, it is not considered a formal taxonomic grouping in systematic biology, unless it is used in the cladistic sense, including tetrapods. The traditional term pisces (also ichthyes) is considered a typological, but not a phylogenetic classification.
The earliest organisms that can be classified as fish were soft-bodied chordates that first appeared during the Cambrian period. Although they lacked a true spine, they possessed notochords which allowed them to be more agile than their invertebrate counterparts. Fish would continue to evolve through the Paleozoic era, diversifying into a wide variety of forms. Many fish of the Paleozoic developed external armor that protected them from predators. The first fish with jaws appeared in the Silurian period, after which many (such as sharks) became formidable marine predators rather than just the prey of arthropods.
Fish anatomy is primarily governed by the physical characteristics of water, which is much denser than air, holds a relatively small amount of dissolved oxygen, and absorbs light more than air does.
Fish have a variety of different body plans. Their body is divided into head, trunk, and tail, although the dividing points are not always externally visible. The body is often fusiform, a streamlined body plan often found in fast-moving fish. They may also be filiform (eel-shaped) or vermiform (worm-shaped). Also, fish are often either laterally compressed (thin) or vertically depressed (flat).
Seen in this picture are (1) – operculum (gill cover), (2) – lateral line, (3) – dorsal fin, (4) – adipose fin, (5) – caudal peduncle, (6) – caudal fin, (7) – anal fin, (8) – photophores, (9) – pelvic fins (paired), (10) – pectoral fins (paired).
The ocean sunfish ( Mola mola) is the heaviest bony fish in the world, with an average weight of 1000 kilograms. The species is native to tropical and temperate waters around the globe. 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 anal fins are extended.
Sunfish live on a diet that consists mainly of jellyfish. As this diet is nutritionally poor, they consume large amounts in order to develop and maintain their great bulk. Females of the species can produce more eggs than any other known vertebrate. Sunfish fry resemble miniature pufferfish, with large pectoral fins, a tail fin and body spines uncharacteristic of adult sunfish.
- ...that the Loricariidae or the suckermouth catfish from Central and South America is the largest family of catfish, with almost 700 species and new species being described each year?
- ...that the king of herrings (Regalecus glesne), an oarfish of the family Regalecidae, is the world's longest bony fish with a length of 41 feet (12 m)?
- ...that the yoyo loach (Botia almorhae) from India and Pakistan is named for their black and white patterns, which often can be seen to spell "yoyo" especially in younger specimens?
- ...that studies of the inshore marine fish small-scale whiting (Sillago parvisquamis) suggest the female starts life smaller than the male, but grows faster and is larger than the male within two years?
- ... that the cream-spotted cardinalfish is the sole member of the new genus Ozichthys?
In American English, the name gar (or garpike) is strictly applied to members of the Lepisosteidae, a family including seven living species of fish in two genera that inhabit fresh, brackish, and occasionally marine, waters of eastern North America, Central America, and the Caribbean islands.
Mudskippers, such as this Periophthalmodon septemradiatus, are uniquely adapted to a completely amphibious lifestyle. They are active when out of water, feeding and interacting with one another, as well as defending their territories.
Salmon fry hatching (Salmo salar) - the larva has grown around the remains of the yolk - visible are the arteries spinning around the yolk and little oildrops, also the gut, the spine, the main caudal blood vessel, the bladder and the arcs of the gills.
Koi are ornamental domesticated varieties of the common carp Cyprinus carpio, originated from China and widely spread in Japan. They are very closely related to goldfish. The word "koi" comes from Japanese meaning "carp".
A discus (Symphysodon discus) is guarding its eggs. As for most cichlids, brood care is highly developed with both the parents caring for the young. Additionally, adult discus produce a secretion through their skin, off which the larvae live during their first few days.
Common carps (Cyprinus carpio) competing for food at the pond of the Royal Palace Agdal of Marrakech in Morocco.
The giant grouper (Epinephelus lanceolatus), is the largest bony fish found in coral reefs and can grow as large as 2.7 meters (9 ft) long, weighing up to 600 kg (1320 lb).
The Fish Quiz is a friendly quiz competition designed to test your general knowledge of fish. The current game is Fish Quiz Tournament X. You can read more and join the game here.
"So long, and thanks for all the fish!"
For more lists, please see here
The Fish Portal: Mini Edition
The Mini Edition of the Fish Portal is available for you to use on your wikipedia user page or talk page. It uses minimum space but retains many crucial features of the portal. To use it, place {{Portal:Fish/Mini portal}} on the designated page. See here for an example of the mini portal on a user page.
| Ichthyology :
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Fish anatomy, Fish development, Fish diseases, Fish locomotion, Fish migration, Ichthyology terms, Limnology, Marine biology, Meristics, Oceanography, Spawning
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| Taxa :
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Chondrichthyes, Osteichthyes, Actinopterygii, Sarcopterygii, Chondrostei, Neopterygii, Holostei, Teleostei, Osteoglossomorpha, Elopomorpha, Clupeomorpha, Ostariophysi, Cyclosquamata, Scopelomorpha, Lampridiomorpha, Polymyxiomorpha, Paracanthopterygii, Acanthopterygii
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| Fishery :
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Angling, Aquaculture, Fishing, Fish as food, Fish farming, Fish market, Fisheries management, Fishing industry, Overfishing
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| Food fish :
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Anchovy, Barb, Basa fish, Bass, Carp, Catfish, Cod, Eel, Flatfish, Goby, Gourami, Haddock, Herring, Mackerel, Oily fish, Perch, Pollock, Salmon, Snapper, Snakehead, Sturgeon, Tilapia, Trout, Tuna, Whitefish
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| Fishkeeping :
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Aeration, Aquarium, Fish food, Marine aquarium, Reef aquarium, Brackish water aquarium
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| Ornamental fish :
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Angelfish(freshwater), Angelfish(marine), Barb, Blenny, Boxfish, Butterflyfish, Cichlid, Chromis, Clownfish, Corydoras, Damsel, Danio, Discus, Goby, Goldfish, Gourami, Koi, Lionfish[disambiguation needed], Live-bearer, Loach, Mbuna, Rainbowfish, Pufferfish, Rasbora, Seahorse, Siamese fighting fish, Suckermouth catfish, Tang, Tetra, Triggerfish, Wrasse
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| Others :
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Amphibious fish, Electric fish, Deep sea fish, Ichthys, Mermaid, Prehistoric fish, Ray, Shark, Walking fish
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Here are some tasks you can do, as organized by the WikiProject Fishes, if you are interested, please sign up on the project page.
Copyedit:
Expand: Barb (fish species), fishing industry, Greater Argentine, Gold Spot Pleco, Fish anatomy, Black goby, Poecilia caucana, Arrowtooth flounder, Paiute cutthroat trout, Serrasalmus, Pygocentrus, Greater pipefish, Lesser pipefish
Develop featured article:
Peer review: Spring cavefish, Convict cichlid, Hoplosternum littorale, Shortnose sturgeon
Article requests: Missing topics about Fish, Devonian Fish Project article requests, Jörg Freyhof
Picture request: Phreatobius cisternarum, Glandulocaudinae, Chaca (genus), Firewood catfish, Cetopsidae, Cranoglanis, Scoloplax, Nematogenys inermis, Austroglanis, Astroblepus, Pseudopimelodidae, Chiapas catfish (Upload any non-copyrighted fish images to the appropriate section of Wikimedia Commons)
Identify images: Identify and move the images to the appropriate section of Wikimedia Commons
Collaboration: Pacific jack mackerel (edit | talk | history | protect | delete | links | watch | logs | views)
Assessment: Assess the quality and importance of fish articles
Other: Expand Fish anatomy and Fish locomotion, Create articles for the missing superfamilies and families in the Perciformes. Merge GLAM/ARKive donated texts into articles about endangered species.
If you have any question, comment or suggestion, please discussion here.
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