Fishes (etc.)

This page covers more than fishes, but I don't know if there's a correct scientific term to include everything that it covers. Had I been in a more frivolous mood, I might have called it Seafood. Basically, it covers things that live underwater; this includes molluscs, crustaceans and other related creatures.

The snag is that not all molluscs and not all crustaceans live underwater. For example, see the last entry!

The Life Cycle of the Salmon

The life cycle of the salmon varies slightly between species. The following describes the life cycle of the Atlantic salmon. Note also that the terminology is not definitive; for instance, there is some disagreement over the use of the term salmon as opposed to grilse. Grilse are often less prized by anglers as they are still not fully mature.

A newly hatched salmon with residual yolk sac still attached		Alevin (alla–vin)
Transitory stage between alevin and parr		Fry
A young salmon (less than three years old) that has not yet left its native stream		Parr
The final freshwater stage, before (and during) migration to the sea		Smolt
A young salmon after one winter at sea		Grilse
A salmon that has had two or more winters at sea		Salmon
A mature salmon that has spawned (after which it will often die)		Kelt

Other

Unusual characteristic of the mudskippers (several species of fish – specifically gobies)			Amphibious
Fish that migrate from the sea into fresh water (estuaries and rivers) to spawn, are described as			Anadromous
Fish that migrate from fresh water into the sea to spawn, are described as			Catadromous
All fish that migrate between the sea and fresh water to spawn (i.e. both of the above types together) are described as			Diadromous

Hearts of an octopus		3
Legs of a starfish		5
Arms of a cuttlefish or squid (as well as two tentacles; the difference is somewhat arcane, and the tentacles may or may not count as arms)		8
Legs of a lobster, crab, shrimp, crayfish etc. (order Decapods; the front pair of legs often have huge claws)		10
Legs of a woodlouse		14

Species of herring that invaded the Great Lakes in the 1950s and 60s, after bypassing Niagara Falls using the Welland Canal. Name said to be derived from comparison of its body shape with that of the typical tavern landlady		Alewife
Family of fishes, native to Australia and south-east Asia, known for their habit of preying on land–based insects and other small animals by shooting them down with water droplets from their specialized mouths		Archerfish
Marine crustacean with varieties called acorn and goose		Barnacle
Class of marine and freshwater molluscs whose bodies are enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts (e.g. clams, oysters, cockles, mussels and scallops)		Bivalves (Bivalvia)
Colour of an octopus's blood		Blue
General term for various species of freshwater and marine fish, not closely related to each other, the common variety having the Latin name Abramis brama		Bream
The skeletons of sharks, skates and rays (and some other fishes – scientifically, the chondrichthyes) are made not of bone but of		Cartilage
More correct name for the tail fin		Caudal fin
Pelagic fish live		Close to the surface
Fish thought to be extinct but discovered in the Indian Ocean 1939		Coelacanth
Stinging cells of corals and sea anemones		Cnidoblasts
Feeds on coral – seen by many as a threat to the Great Barrier Reef		Crown–of–Thorns starfish
Mollusc that protects itself with a cloud of brown ink and moves by jet propulsion		Cuttlefish
"Mermaids' purses" (a.k.a. "Devil's purses") – often found washed up on beaches – are really		Egg cases
Genus of crabs (approximately 200 species) where the male has one greatly enlarged claw – the name comes from the motion it makes when gathering and eating food		Fiddler crabs
A young fish that can extend its fins and has started to develop scales throughout its body, but has not yet reached sexual maturity		Fingerling
A recently hatched fish, whose yolk–sac has almost disappeared and whose swim bladder is operational to the point where the fish can actively feed for itself		Fry
The only British freshwater fish classified as both coarse and game		Grayling
Named after the British–born naturalist who discovered it in Trinidad in 1866		Guppy
Family of crustaceans – not true crabs – which live in the empty shells of other crustaceans (typically sea snails)		Hermit crabs
Whitebait are young		Herring
Fish with five black spots, said to represent the fingermarks of St. Peter		John Dory
Common name for fishes in the family Istiophoridae – includes the sailfish, which is probably the fastest fish in the sea (other species in this family are also candidates)		Marlins
Named from the resemblance of its elongated, spear–like upper jaw (up to 3ft long) to a tool used by sailors; also distinguished by its elongated body, and a long, rigid dorsal fin which extends forward to form a crest; a popular sporting fish in tropical areas; species black, white and Atlantic blue
The blue–ringed variety is the only type of ... that's known to be deadly to humans		Octopus
Usually matures as a male and changes to a female later in life		Oyster
Spat: larvae (sic) of (25mm or less in length; developed from eggs fertilised in water, having subsequently found a suitable place to settle)		Oysters
Edible European flatfish, characterised by its smooth brown skin, with distinctive red (or orange) spots and a bony ridge behind the eyes		Plaice
Carnivorous warm–water fishes that attach themselves to sharks and ships		Remora
Area of the North Atlantic ocean in which American and European eels spawn		Sargasso Sea
The world's slowest–moving fish		Seahorse
Alternative name for fish in the mola family (Molidae) – the largest of the ray–finned bony fishes (growing up to 15 feet in length and over 2 tons in weight), whose bodies come to an end just behind the dorsal and anal fins, giving them a distinctive 'half–fish' appearance		Sunfishes
The eyes of a slug or snail (gastropod) are on the ends of its		Tentacles
The two types of sharks that are not predators but feed on plankton		Whale shark
		Basking shark
The major group of terrestrial crustaceans (land crabs also qualify)		Wood lice

© Haydn Thompson 2017–24