SPECIES INFO
Unicorn fish (Eumecichthys fiski) is found worldwide in warmer and tropical marine waters. This has been taken near Florida, USA. This weird fish can reach about 5 feet in length. The fins are red. There are many vertical dark bands across the body. The most unusual feature in this long eel like fish is the body extension that permits the dorsal fin to extend forward of the head. That extension has a vertical red spine at the front.Crestfish family (Lophotidae) are found in warmer waters. These fish have very long dorsal fins that are distinctive with their long rays over the head that form a crest.
This order contains a number of diverse families of marine fish. Included here is the opah (moonfish), crestfishes, ribbonfishes, and the oar fish. This order has a total of about 20 species. Most are silver with red fins. There is a nice series of colored drawings in Migdalksi that shows the diversity in this order.
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.