Fish I.D

Fish Identification Project

By: Maxwell McCord

Title: Marine Fish Species #:1

Common Name: Great White Shark

Scientific Name: Squalus carcharias

Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata

Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Lamniformes

Family: Lamnidae

Geography/ Habitat: The Great White Shark lives in almost all coastal and offshore waters

which have water temperature between 12 and 24 °C.

Life strategy: Great whites are usually solitary animals but are occasionally spotted

travelling in pairs.

Food/ Feed strategy: The great white is carnivorous and preys upon fish, cetaceans,

pinnipeds, sea turtles, sea otters, and seabirds. They like to sneak up on their prey from

below.

Citation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shark

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shark

Title: Marine Fish Species#:2

Common Name: Tiger Shark

Scientific Name: Galeocerdo tigrinus


Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Carcharhiniformes

Family: Carcharhinidae

Geography/ Habitat: This shark lives close to the coast, mainly in tropical and

subtropical waters throughout the world.

Life strategy: Tiger sharks are solitary animals except during mating.

Food/ Feed strategy: The tiger shark is an apex predator and has a reputation for

eating anything. Young tiger sharks are found to prey largely on small fish as well as

various small jellyfish, cephalopods and other mollusks.

Citation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiger_shark

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiger_shark


Common Name: Whale Shark

Scientific Name: Rhincodon typus


Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Orectolobiformes

Family: Rhincodontidae

Geography/ Habitat: Whale sharks are found worldwide in the warm oceans from the

equator to about ±30-40° latitude, both along the coast and in the open seas.. They are not,

however, found in the Mediterranean Sea. They spend most of their time near the surface.

Life strategy: Whale sharks spend most of their time near the surface of the ocean. This is

where they eat and perform most of their life tasks.

Food/ Feed strategy: The whale shark is a filter feeder that sieves small animals from the

water. As it swims with its mouth open, it sucks masses of water filled with prey into its

mouth and through spongy tissue between its 5 large gill arches. After closing its mouth,

the shark uses gills rakers that filter the nourishment from the water. Anything that

doesn't pass through the gills is eaten.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Whaleshark.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Whaleshark.shtml


Common Name: Angel Shark

Scientific Name: Squatina


Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Squatiniformes

Family: Squatinidae

Geography/ Habitat: They occur worldwide in temperate and tropical seas.

Life strategy: Most angel sharks live close to the surface of the ocean, however, some

species inhabit deeper water, down to 1,300 meters.

Food/ Feed strategy: Angelsharks eat fish, crustaceans, and mollusks. They spend the day

hidden in the sand and rocks of the ocean bed. As fish swim by, the angelshark bursts up

and surprises the prey, catching it in its trap-like jaws.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Angelshark.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Angelshark.shtml


Common Name: Blacktip Reef Shark

Scientific Name: Carcharhinus melanopterus




Geography/ Habitat: The blacktip reef shark is very common in the coral reefs and shallow

lagoons of the tropical Indian and Pacific Oceans. Some have recently entered the

Mediterranean (via the Suez Canal).

Life strategy: The blacktip reef shark is a very common shark. These sharks are viviparous

and have litters of 2-4 pups after a 16 month gestation period.

Food/ Feed strategy: The blacktip reef shark mostly eats reef fish. It hunts in small groups

during the day. It commonly preys upon sturgeon fishes and mullet.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Blacktipreef.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Blacktipreef.shtml


Common Name: Blue Shark

Scientific Name: Prionace glauca




Geography/ Habitat: Blue sharks are pelagic; they are found in open waters. Like most

pelagic sharks, they are found worldwide.

Life strategy: Blue sharks often form large, all-male or all-female schools which contain

sharks that are about the same size. No one knows why they do this.

Food/ Feed strategy: The blue shark's diet consists mostly of squid, but it will eat almost

anything; it is an opportunistic feeder.

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Blueshark.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Blueshark.shtml


Common Name: Bluntnose Sixgill Shark

Scientific Name: Hexanchus griseus


Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Hexanchiformes

Family: Hexanchidae

Geography/ Habitat: The Bluntnose Sixgill shark is found worldwide from tropical seas to

northern temperate seas.

Life strategy: The Bluntnose Sixgill shark lives in dark waters at depths down to 5900 ft, in

dark or dim waters. It has been seen in coastal waters, usually below 330 ft. It has also been

seen by the surface of open waters at night (probably hunting).

Food/ Feed strategy: The Bluntnose Sixgill shark eats large fish (like other sharks, billfish,

dolphin, flounder, spurdogs, rays, and cod), crabs, shrimp, smaller fish, and squid with its

very sharp, saw-like teeth. It probably hunts mostly at night.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Bluntnosesixgill.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Bluntnosesixgill.shtml


Common Name: Bonnethead Shark

Scientific Name: Sphyrna tiburo



Family: Sphyrnidae

Geography/ Habitat: Bonnetheads are found in the western Atlantic and eastern Pacific

Oceans, in the surf zone, reefs, on sandy bottoms and in estuaries.

Life strategy: Large schools of Bonnethead sharks migrate to warm water in the winter

and cooler water in the summer.

Food/ Feed strategy: The Bonnethead shark has a varied diet. It eats both hard-shelled

prey (like crustaceans and mollusks) and soft prey (like small fish), and has a variety of

teeth to eat all these animals.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Bonnethead.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Bonnethead.shtml


Common Name: Broadnose Sevengill Shark

Scientific Name: Notorynchus cepedianus


Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Hexanchiformes

Family: Hexanchidae

Geography/ Habitat: The Broadnose Sevengill shark lives in temperate waters down to

about 450 ft. (135 m). The Bluntnose Sevengillgill shark is found in the south Atlantic,

South Pacific, and Indian Oceans. They are widespread geographically but are few in

numbers.

Life strategy: Females reach sexual maturity when they are roughly 7 ft (2.2 m) long

(males at 5 ft = 1.5 m long). These sharks bear live young in shallow bays. Females have

litters of up to 80 live-born pups. The pups are about 16-18 inches (40-45 cm) long.

Food/ Feed strategy: These aggressive sharks eat fish (including other sharks, rays, and

bony fish), seals, and scavenged prey (including fish caught in gill nets and human

corpses).

Citation:

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Broadnosesevengill.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Broadnosesevengill.shtml


Common Name: Bull Shark

Scientific Name: Carcharhinus leucas




Geography/ Habitat: The bull shark is found close to shore and can live for a while in fresh

water, frequenting estuaries, rivers and lakes. It has been found up to 1,750 miles (2800

km) up the Mississippi River in the USA and 2,500 miles (4000 km) up the Amazon River

in Peru. It has been found in Lake Nicaragua (Central America) and the Zambezi River

(Africa).

Life strategy: Bull sharks are viviparous (like mammals, giving birth to live animals that

were nourished by through a placenta). Litters of 1 to 13 pups are common after a

gestation period of about one year. Pups are about 28 inches (70 cm) long at birth. Very

young bull sharks are frequently found in protected bays near the mouths of rivers, in

briny water

Food/ Feed strategy: The bull shark eats fish (including other sharks and rays), turtles,

birds, mollusks, crustaceans, and dolphins. It will eat almost anything.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Bullshark.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Bullshark.shtml


Common Name: Spiny Dogfish

Scientific Name: Squalus acanthias


Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Squaliformes

Family: Squalidae

Geography/ Habitat: The spiny dogfish shark stays in water that is between 45°F - 59°F. It

will venture into brackish waters. Dogfish are mostly bottom-dwellers, dwelling in depths

from the surface down to 400 fathoms.

Life strategy: Spiny dogfish sharks are gregarious (social) and travel in schools of

hundreds to thousands of individuals. These schools are sometimes segregated by sex and

age. They are called dogfish because they travel and hunt in packs. They also migrate in

schools, following cool waters.

Food/ Feed strategy: It eats mostly fish (including other sharks), but also eats squid and

octopus.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Dogfish.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Dogfish.shtml


Common Name: Galapagos Shark

Scientific Name: Carcharhinus galapagensis




Geography/ Habitat: Galapagos sharks live in warm waters. They are pelagic (live in open

oceans) at depths ranging from 16-200 feet. The Galapagos shark is found in tropical seas

near islands.

Life strategy: The Galapagos shark usually swims in schools.

Food/ Feed strategy: Galapagos sharks are benthic feeders, eating prey taken from the

ocean floor. Their diet includes bottom-dwelling squid, fish, and octopus.

Citation:

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Galapagosshark.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Galapagosshark.shtml


Common Name: Goblin Shark

Scientific Name: Mitsukurina owstoni



Family: Owstoni

Geography/ Habitat: The Goblin shark is a bottom-dweller found in depths of about 3,940

feet in the western Pacific, the western Indian Ocean and the western and eastern Atlantic.

Life strategy: No one knows much about the goblin shark.

Food/ Feed strategy: The Goblin shark eats fish (both large and small), including other

sharks and rays. They also eat squid and crustaceans.

Citation:

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Goblin.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Goblin.shtml


Common Name: Hammerhead Shark

Scientific Name: Sphyrna mokarran


Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Sphyrna

Family: Mokarran

Geography/ Habitat: The great hammerhead swims in warm and relatively warm water

along the coastlines. They live over the continental shelves and the adjacent drop-off (the

upper part of the mesopelagic zone) to depths of about 260 feet. The great hammerhead is

found in tropical and sub-tropical waters worldwide.

Life strategy: The great hammerhead migrates seasonally to cooler waters during the

summer.

Food/ Feed strategy: The great hammerhead is a fierce predator with a good sense of smell

that helps it find its prey. The great hammerhead eats fish, including rays, and other

sharks, squid, octopuses, and crustaceans. The great hammerhead has been known to be

cannibalistic.

Citation:

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Hammerhead.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Hammerhead.shtml


Common Name: Lemon Shark

Scientific Name: Negaprion brevirostris


Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Negaprion

Family: Brevirostris

Geography/ Habitat: The lemon shark is found in the Pacific off Latin and South America,

in the Atlantic off the coasts of South America and west Africa, and in the Gulf of Mexico.

It lives near the surface and at moderate depths, frequenting bays, docks, and river

mouths.

Life strategy: Litters consist of about 36 young which are about 18 inches long at birth.

Food/ Feed strategy: It eats mostly fish (including other sharks), but will also eats mollusks

and crustaceans.

Citation: www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Lemonshark


Common Name: Mako Shark

Scientific Name: Isurus oxyrinchus


Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Isurus

Family: Oxyrinchus

Geography/ Habitat: Short-finned Makos are found world-wide in temperate and

tropical seas. Makos range from the surface to relatively deep waters. They are pelagic

oceanic swimmers, but are occasionally found inshore. In warm, tropical oceans, they

swim deep below the surface as they prefer cool water. They are found off the island of

Tahiti at depths of 650-1,300 feet.

Life strategy: Mako sharks are the fastest swimming sharks and can even leap out of

the water. They are also probably among the fastest fish. Estimates of their speed vary;

some say that they can swim at about 60 miles per hour, while more conservative

estimates are about 22 mph. There hasn't been enough experimentation on their speeds

to have an definitive answer.

Food/ Feed strategy: Mako Sharks eat schooling fish, including tuna, herring, mackerel,

swordfish, and porpoise. They are opportunistic feeders, so they eat just about

anything.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Mako.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Mako.shtml


Common Name: Nurse Shark

Scientific Name: Ginglymostoma cirratum


Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Orectolobiformes

Family: Orectolobidae

Geography/ Habitat: Nurse Sharks are found in the western Atlantic Ocean and the

eastern Pacific Ocean. Nurse sharks live in warm waters and are shallow-water sharks

(going from the surface to 230 feet = 70 m deep). They are bottom-dwellers, living near

sandy beaches, mudflats, and sandbars. They are common in coral reefs.

Life strategy: Nurse Sharks reproduce via aplacental viviparity. In aplacental viviparity,

the eggs develop inside the body after internal fertilization and hatch within the body of the

mother. Litters consist of 20-30 pups that are tiny replicas of the adult.

Food/ Feed strategy: Nurse Sharks eat bottom-dwelling fish, shrimp, squid, octopus, crabs,

sea snails, lobster, sea urchins, and coral. The barbels (thin, fleshy, whisker-like organs on

the lower jaw in front of the nostrils that sense touch and taste) help the shark locate

potential food. Most hunting is done at night.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Nurseshark.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Nurseshark.shtml


Common Name: Porbeagle Shark

Scientific Name: Lamna nasus



Family: Lamnidae

Geography/ Habitat: Porbeagles live in cold waters down to about 1,200 feet. These

common sharks live in the North and South Atlantic and the South Pacific Oceans.

Life strategy: Porbeagles are viviparous (they give birth to live young). Embryos are

cannibalistic in the womb; only 2-4 pups survive pregnancy.

Food/ Feed strategy: The porbeagle feed on fish (mostly mackerel, squid, cod, hake,

flounder and other bottom-dwelling fish) with its long, sharp teeth.

Citation:

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Porbeagle.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Porbeagle.shtml


Common Name: Spined Pygmy Shark

Scientific Name: Squaliolus laticaudus

Kingdom:Aniamlia Phylum: Chordata

Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Squaliformes

Family: Squalidae

Geography/ Habitat: The spined pygmy shark is found in temperate and tropical oceans

worldwide. The spined pygmy shark lives in deep water but hunts at middle depths.

Life strategy: This uncommon shark lives in deep water (down to 6,550 ft) but migrates

vertically each day to hunt at night in mid-depth waters (about 650 ft).

Food/ Feed strategy: It eats squid, shrimp, and mid-water fish (especially lanternfishes).

This uncommon shark lives in deep water but migrates vertically each day to hunt at night

in mid-depth waters.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Spinedpgymy.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/species/Spinedpgymy.shtml


Common Name: Thresher Shark

Scientific Name: Alopias vulpinus



Family: Alopias

Geography/ Habitat: The Common Thresher Shark swims from the surface to a depth of

about 1,150 feet. It lives in open tropical and temperate waters, including the eastern and

western Atlantic, the central Pacific, and the Indo-west Pacific.

Life strategy:

Food/ Feed strategy: The Thresher eats squid and fish, corraling them with its elongated

tail, stunning them with slaps from it, and catching them with its very sharp (but small)

teeth.

Citation: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/allabout/alphasharks.shtml

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/sharks/allabout/alphasharks.shtml


Common Name: Flounder

Scientific Name:


Class: Actinopterygii Order: Pleuronectiformes

Family: Paralichthyidae

Geography/ Habitat: They have been found at the bottom of the Mariana trench, the

deepest known ocean canyon.

Life strategy: In its life cycle, an adult flounder has two eyes situated on one side of its

head, while at hatching one eye is located on each side of its brain. One eye migrates to the

other side of the body as a process of metamorphosis as it grows from larval to juvenile

stage. As an adult, a flounder changes its habits and camouflages itself by lying on the

bottom of the ocean floor as protection against predators.[1] As a result, the eyes are then

on the side which faces up. The side to which the eyes migrate is dependent on the species

type.

Food/ Feed strategy: Flounder ambush their prey, feeding at soft muddy areas of the sea

bottom, near bridge piles, docks and coral reefs.

Citation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flounder

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flounder


Common Name: Hogfish

Scientific Name: Lachnolaimus maximus


Class: Actinopterygii Order: Perciformes

Family: Labridae

Geography/ Habitat: The hogfish is one of the larger species of wrasses and is found in the

western Atlantic Ocean with a range from Bermuda, south through the Caribbean Sea and

northern Gulf of Mexico, continuing to the north coast of South America. Hogfish are

abundant in the Florida Keys and are a valuable, economically important species among

fisherman.

Life strategy: The hogfish is characterized by a large laterally compressed body shape.

Like many wrasses, the hogfish is a sequential hermaphrodite, which means it changes sex

during different life stages.

Food/ Feed strategy: It possesses a very elongated snout which it uses to search for

crustaceans buried in the sediment

Citation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hogfish

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hogfish


Common Name: Atlantic Bluefin Tuna

Scientific Name: Thunnus thynnus



Family: Scombridae

Geography/ Habitat: Atlantic bluefin are native to both the western and eastern

Atlantic Ocean, as well as the Mediterranean Sea. Atlantic bluefin have become extinct

in the Black Sea.

Life strategy: Atlantic bluefin tuna may exceed 990 lb in weight, and rival the black

marlin, blue marlin and swordfish as the largest Perciformes. Throughout recorded

history, the Atlantic bluefin tuna has been highly prized as a food fish. Besides their

commercial value as food, the great size, speed, and power they display as apex

predators has attracted the admiration of fishermen, writers, and scientists.

Food/ Feed strategy: The Atlantic bluefin tuna typically hunts small fish and

invertebrates such as sardines, herring, mackerel, squid and crustaceans.

Citation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_bluefin_tuna

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_bluefin_tuna


Common Name: Albacore Tuna

Scientific Name: Thunnus alalunga



Family: Scombridae

Geography/ Habitat: It is found in the open waters of all tropical and temperate oceans,

and the Mediterranean Sea.

Life strategy: Albacore is a prized food, and the albacore fishery is economically

significant. Methods of fishing include pole and line, long-line fishing, trolling, and some

purse seining. It is also sought after by sport fishers.

Food/ Feed strategy: The Albacore tuna typically hunts small fish and invertebrates such

as sardines, herring, mackerel, squid and crustaceans.

Citation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albacore

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albacore


Common Name: Skipjack Tuna

Scientific Name: Katsuwonus pelamis



Family: Scombridae

Geography/ Habitat: It is a cosmopolitan pelagic fish found in tropical and warm-

temperate waters. It is a very important species for fisheries.

Life strategy: It is a streamlined, fast-swimming pelagic fish, common in tropical waters

throughout the world, where it inhabits surface waters in large shoals

Food/ Feed strategy: It feeds on fish, crustaceans, cephalopods and molluscs.

Citation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skipjack_tuna

Documents

Fish I.D