Pre-lab Fish Dissection

Directions: Use the lab dissection guide and your notes on fish to answer the following questions.

1.  List all 7 taxons of classification in order starting with the most broad to the most specific. (hint:King Phillip)

2.  Classify fish. (Kingdom, Phylum, Subphylum, and the 3 classes of fish)

3.  What class represents the cartilaginous fish and which class represents the bony fish?

4.  What does bilateral symmetry mean? ______

5.  List all the characteristics of the Phylum Chordata.

6.  What are the members of the subphylum vertebrata and the characteristics they share.

7.  Which fins are used for stability ______and maneuvering ______.

8.  What do bony fish use to stay buoyant in the water? What do sharks have to help them stay buoyant in the water?

9.  What kind of scales do bony fish have? Define each.

10.  What are you going to do with the scales in the lab?______

11.  How many gill slits do bony fish have?______

12.  What is an operculum? (function?)

13.  Explain the respiration in fish. Do they have lungs? How do they breath?

14.  What are you going to do after you lift the operculum and observe their color?

15.  Draw and label the gill of a fish (use your book pg. 167 or your gill coloring). Label the gill arch and gill filaments.

16.  How can you sex your fish? Describe in detail.

17.  Draw a figure showing how you are going to cut through the skin and muscle of the perch.

18.  Sketch out the layout of the internal organs of your bony fish. Include gills, spine, kidney, swim bladder, heart, liver, stomach, intestines, gonads, and vent.

19.  What color will the liver be?______

20.  Where can the gall bladder be found?______

21.  What organs do you need to remove to locate the esophagus and stomach?______

22.  What organ can be found behind the gills but in front of the liver?______

23.  What organ can be found toward the posterior part of the fish under the swim bladder?

24.  What is the function of the kidneys? And describe what they will look like in your perch.

25.  Name and define the 4 reproductive behaviors of bony fish.

26.  What is the difference between protandry and protogyny? Our fish doesn’t change sex but wouldn’t that be cool if it did!

27.  Name one fish that DOES change sex and explain the change.

28.  Bony fish rely on what senses?

29.  Sharks rely on what senses to find prey? (describe each)

30.  What kind of scales do sharks and skates possess? Draw a picture of it.

31.  What kind of caudal fin do sharks have? What kind of body shape do sharks have?

32.  How many gill slits do sharks have? ______Do they have a gill cover?______

33.  What is the difference between skates and rays?