Blackbelly dragonfish (Stomias atriventer) is found from California south to Mexico. This is probably also found near Chile. This is a long narrow 10 inch fish with the dorsal and anal fins set way back on the body. There is a medium length barbel. The head is large and the teeth are long.

The deep sea dragonfish family contains around a dozen or so very unusual scaled fish. These are small fish mostly less than 12-16 inches in length. They are elongated with large mouths with thin long teeth. Some of the teeth could be compared to fangs. They have a long barbel that can be much longer than the length of the fish. They are found at from about 5,000 to 8,000 feet below the surface of the sea. As of about 1983 there were about 75 known species.

Salmon Group, Order Salmoniformes, is found worldwide in oceans. To simplify study of this group we have separated the deep sea species into a second artificial order. This order includes a number of families with small sizes and bizarre shapes. (Some authors have moved these families to the order Stomiiformes.)

We have found two readily available sources that include information on deep sea fish that are in many libraries: Peterson Field Guide to Pacific Coast Fishes and the Encyclopedia of Fishes edited by Paxton.

We feel the purposes of hierarchical taxonomy are several fold. One purpose is for scientists to help discover physical and genetic relationships between species. A second, and probably more important purpose, is to help field biologists who monitor the environment and frequently work in many different groups of lifeforms to easily identify something. A third purpose is to help those who want to know about the different species on planet earth for a variety of reasons.

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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