fish, in zoology: The Cartilaginous Fishes

The cartilaginous fish (sharks, rays, and chimaeras) are distinguished from the bony fish by their cartilage skeletons, by the absence of either a swim bladder or lungs, by the construction of their tail fins, and by the absence in most of a gill covering, or operculum. The skin of members of this group is covered with imbedded toothlike structures called denticles, giving it a rough, sandpapery quality. Sharks are almost exclusively marine in distribution.

Sections in this article:

• Introduction
• The Bony Fishes
• The Cartilaginous Fishes
• The Jawless Fishes
• Reproduction
• Characteristic Anatomical Features
• Bibliography

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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