Species Hierarchy
Kingdom ANIMAL (ANIMALIA)
Phylum BACKBONED ANIMALS (CHORDATA)
Class FISH - BONEY (TELEOSTOMI)
Order FISH - PERCH-LIKE (PERCIFORMES)
Family FISH - BUTTERFLY (CHAETODONTIDAE AND POMACANT)
Common name: BANK BUTTERFLYFISH
Scentific name: CHAETODON AYA

Species Info:

This lifeform is found in the Caribbean Ocean. The stripes will help identify this lifeform. This lifeform is marine and found only in salt water.

Bank butterflyfish (Chaetodon aya) is found from North Carolina through the islands of the Caribbean to Yucatan, Mexico. This is a coastal fish that is absent from the Bahamas. The black stripe from the dorsal fin to the eye and the other black stripe from the dorsal fin down help identify this fish.

Butterfly fish, family Chaetodontidae, are a group of small  marine fish that inhabit the reefs of the world. There are many  species in the group, many of which are both beautiful and abundant. There are about 115 species distributed among ten genera. The marine angel fish family (Pomacanthidae) is combined herein with its additional perhaps 50 species. The Pomacanthidae includes the genera Pomacanthus and Holocanthus.

Perch-like Fish, Order Perciformes, are the largest order of fish in both freshwater and shallow saltwater. Most of the  conventional fish belong to this order. The bass, bluegills,  perch and crappies of freshwater plus the groupers and sea bass  of salt water belong to this order. The fish all have spiny rays in their fins and the tail fin has seventeen rays. There are approximately 150 families.

Bony fish, Class Teleostomi, are a class of chordates that  include the majority of fish-like animals found on earth. They  are characterized by a bony jaw and a bony skeleton. They are  found in both fresh and marine waters.

Backboned Animals (Phylum Chordata) are the most advanced group of animals on earth. These animals are characterized by having a spinal cord or backbone. Most members have a clearly defined brain that controls the organism through a spinal cord. Fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals are in this phylum.

Currently, some taxonomists believe that the fish should be divided into two groups (sharks and regular fishes) and that there are some other primitive groups in the phylum such as hagfish or lampreys.

Animal Kingdom contains numerous organisms that feed on other animals or plants. Included in the animal kingdom are the lower marine invertebrates such as sponges and corals, the jointed legged animals such as insects and spiders, and the backboned animals such as fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.

 

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