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Northern snakehead

Northern snakehead
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Great white sharks

Great white sharks

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Flatfishes
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Arapaima
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Largetooth sawfish
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About Fish

All fish share two traits: they live in water and they have a backbone—they are
vertebrates.

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Apart from these similarities, however, many of the species in this group differ
markedly from one another. Fin fish like salmon have gills, are covered in scales,
and reproduce by laying eggs. Eels, by contrast, have worm-like bodies and
exceedingly slimy skin. Lungfish gulp air. Whale sharks, the largest fish, give birth
to live young and eat only tiny fish, squid, and plankton. Some species, such as the
weedy sea dragon, are so bizarre they seem almost unreal.

Fish have developed special senses, too. Because water transmits sounds,
disperses chemicals, and conducts electricity better than air, fish rely less on their
vision and more on their hearing, taste, and smell. Many can detect motion in the
water using a special row of scales with sensors known as the lateral line. Others
can find their prey and even navigate by detecting electrical charges.

One reason fish are so diverse is that 70 percent of the planet is covered in water.
The animals in this group live in a variety of habitats ranging from coral reefs and
kelp forests to rivers, streams, and the open ocean. Another is that fish are very
old on the evolutionary scale. According to fossil records, they have been on
Earth for more than 500 million years! The total number of living fish species—
about 32,000— is greater than the total of all other vertebrate species
(amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals) combined.

F RO M T H E N AT I O N A L G E O G R A P H I C B O O K , A N I M A L E N C YC LO P E D I A , 2 0 1 2

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Watch this See how this This sacred First-ever video Watch this Why snakes are
water-spitting school of tiny golden fish shows wolves water-spitting disappearing
fish identify fish uses thrives in catching and fish identify from…
human faces,… bacteria to Bhutan eating fish human faces,…
glow…

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The world's biggest marine reserve seems to be doing its job

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SCIENCE

Spectacular fossil fish reveal a critical period of evolution

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Can Portuguese sardines make a comeback?

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Destructive lionfish are invading Brazil

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MORE ANIMALS

AMPHIBIANS

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BIRDS

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I N V E RT E B RAT E S

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MAMMALS

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REPTILES

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