At Nebraska’s Schram Park, and Ak-Sar-Ben Aquarium, one can learn a lot about the identifications of fish, reptiles, and amphibians. They have aquariums with different species of fish native to Nebraska, and a terrarium with native reptiles and amphibians. After observing the species one would be able to identify and describe their appearance, history, and the areas they live in. Different species of fish are located in the aquariums, while the terrarium displays a variety of turtles as well as a frog.
There are many different species of fish that are on display in the aquarium. Fish can be identified by their color, shape, placement of fins, as well as other things. Northern pike can be identified by their full body scales and duck billed
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Bullheads and catfish are very similar in appearance with only a few differences. Bullheads have rounded tails, while a catfish has a forked tail. A largemouth bass has an upper jaw that extends past its eye. Buffalo can be identified by their downturned mouth and thick lips. Bluegill and green sunfish are very close in appearance, but can be distinguished by their color variation; the bluegill has a solid black opercular fin, while the green sunfish has a white or yellow edge extending to their opercular flap. Rock bass have distinct blood shot eyes, that set them apart. Ancient fish have a long life span, cartilage skeleton, and a distinct dorsal fin in the posterior of the fish, rather than the front. Modern fish have shorter life spans and the dorsal fin is more towards the front. Ancient fish include sturgeon and paddlefish while the modern fish include catfish and trout. These are just a handful out of the one hundred plus fish that live in Nebraska’s lakes, streams, and …show more content…
The terrarium has reptiles, amphibians, and even a fish inside of it. The appearance of the terrarium consists of many plants, a small pond, and rocks. The plants give shelter and a real life nature feel for the animals within. The animals inside the terrarium include turtles, frogs, and a goldfish. These animals are fed minnows and crickets by the staff. The three species of turtles that are on display are the red-eared turtle, Blanding’s turtles, and the Western painted turtle. It also consisted of one variation of a frog, the bullfrog. The bullfrog is the largest frog in the state, and can be recognized by either dark shades of green of a brownish green color. Their bellies are either white or a grey marble. When fully grown their bodies can exceed 6-8 inches long. Their most distinct characteristic is not something you see, but something you hear. Their call is a very deep sounding “jug-o-rum” sound, which can be hear from great distances away. Bullfrogs are aquatic and prefer large lakes and ponds with plenty of vegetation. Once in a lake or pond they normally tend to stay within that area and not migrate somewhere else. Female bullfrogs will lay upwards to 20,000 thousand eggs at one time. Tadpoles will live for about two years before they undergo metamorphosis to start becoming a frog, and then spend an additional two to three years maturing. Adult
Of course there are many beautiful and dynamic fish that reside in the waters of Hawaii, but none are as captivating as the Humuhumumunukunukuapua'a (Rhinecanthus rectangulus ). This reef trigger-fish is the official state fish of Hawaii because of its abundance in the shallow waters of the coast. Humuhumumunukunukuapua'a means “nose like a pig” because of the shape of its nose due to the formation of its teeth and because it makes a “snorting” sound when abruptly taken from the water and when swimming away from predators. The locals of Hawaii usually call this fish humuhumu (hoo-moo-hoo-moo) in lieu of having to pronounce its full name for conversation purposes. In other parts of the world this shallow water fish is also known as the Picasso and rectangle fish because of the colors and patterns on its body. Since the humuhumu prefer waters with degrees from seventy-five to eighty degrees Fahrenheit they are found and indigenous to the “Indo-Pacific: Hawaiian islands, Red Sea south to East London, South Africa and east through Indonesia to the Marquesan Islands, north to southern Japan, south to Lord Howe Island.”(Oceanlink.com).According to ask a Marine Scientist:Osteichthyes , they are in the class of the “Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)”,the order of the ”Tetraodontiformes (Puffers and filefishes)”,a member of the ”Balistidae” family(Oceanlink.com), and its biome of preference is the coastal strand.
"Introduction for Creating Habitats and Homes for Illinois Wildlife." DNR. Web. 14 Sept. 2011. .
Biology: The average length of a Skipjack Tuna is 32 inches long (80cm) and weigh anywhere between 7-22 pounds (8-10kg). The current record for the biggest Skipjack Tuna weighs in at 76 pounds (34.5kg) and was 43 inches long (108cm). The colour of the top region is either dark blue or purple, and the lower region including the belly are primarily a silver colour with anywhere from 4-6 dark, broken lines that run across the body (FLMNH). The body shape is elongated and possesses a fusiform shape, meaning it is wide in the middle and tapers at both ends; it also possesses a bilateral symmetry. There are two dorsal fins present, the first consisting of around 14-16 spines. There is a small gap in between the two fins, and the second fin is spineless (ADW) (FLMNH). Behind the second dorsal fin, are between 7-9 finlets, which aid the fish in “reducing turbulence and maintaining directional control when swimming at high speeds” (Gardieff, Susie). On the underlying side of the Tuna, the anal fin is present and it is in about the same location below the second dorsal fin, and following the anal fin is another 7-8 finlets. The fish has short pectoral fins consisting of between 26-27 rays. The fish also have a single row of teeth, shaped conically (cone shaped) (FLMNH).
U.S. Department of the interior, National Park Service. (2013). Endangered Species. Retrieved from website: http://www.nature.nps.gov/biology/endangeredspecies/index.cfm
Within the state of Florida there are dozens of individualized, non-profit organizations making an effort to help the local wildlife. The local land and marine wildlife includes birds, geckos, frogs, snakes, panthers, manatees, sea turtles, fishes, sharks, corals, lizards and many, many more. Florida State is located on the Southeastern tip of the United States providing a unique opportunity for conservation of salt-water animals. While there are animal conservation efforts taking place all over the world, this essay will focus on two animal species that humans are specifically trying to save in Florida State. The two main animal species of focus are manatees and sea turtles.
...m. 1996. Oklahoma’s Most Wanted: The Texas Horned Lizard. Web. Accessed 15 February 2014 at https://www.wildlifedepartment.com/wildlifemgmt/species/lizard.PDF
I have been fishing the lakes and rivers of the southeastern United States for most of my life and for most of that time I have been pursuing the common carp. But about 15 years ago I started catching these strange new fish occasionally when I was carp fishing. I can remember as if it were yesterday the first time I landed this stunning silver giant, and I had not a clue what it was. At the end of that session I rushed home and began looking thru every book I had on fresh water fishes. Finally, I found a picture of a fish that I believed was the same one I had caught. It was a White Amur or as it is more commonly known, grass carp.
Their shapes and patterns are similar with the majority displaying three wide stripes which are placed vertically across their bodies. The reason why these beautiful fish are known as peacock bass is because they all possess a spot on their tail fins that imitates the eye on a peacock’s feathers. The eye is used by both the peacock and the peacock fish, as a defense mechanism against predators. In addition, the eye can be used by the peacock fish as a lure of its own when
Diving into the book I found that Paul Greenberg takes his readers on a journey starting from when he was just a boy and enjoyed the simple act of casting a baited-line into the water and waiting for a fish to latch onto the hook. “By the summer of 1981, I had a boat...and several thousand square miles of sea for my own use.” (3) After being hooked by Greenberg’s opening story, I learned that the four fish from the title of the book are salmon, sea bass, cod, and tuna. These four fish are on almost every seafood restaurant's menu. The book only has about six traditional chapters but four of them are dedicated to a single fish from the list mentioned before. Regardless, the book is still over two hundred pages long because Greenberg goes so in-depth with the story of each fish.
Fish were amongst the first known chordates about 500 million years ago. Therefore, they have a very elaborate and complicated evolutionary history. The first type of fish to appear during the Ordovician era were called Ostracoderms. They had their head and flanks covered with a bony armor while they had a cartilaginous back. The shield was used to keep off predators. The extinction of the Ostracoderms during the Devonian period saw the emergence of Placoderms. These types of fish were also armored, but their functional jaws distinguished them from their predecessors. They also have gills derived from their jaws that took over the specialized role of gaseous exchange. Evolution of
...emale leatherback turtle and her habits in order to fully understand this critically endangered marine animal.
Barbour, Roger W. and Ernst, Carl H. Turtles of the United States. Lexington: The Universty Press of Kentucky, 1972. Print
• Understand the movement of fish. Since small water bodies have limited oxygen supply, fish tend to stay shallower. On the contrary, fish in larger lakes have adequate oxygen supply; hence, fish tend to stay where there is food. The fish may also stay deeper because the temperature of the deep water is slightly higher.
There is one difference in their anatomy and physiology, and that is how the fish regulate the water and salts in their internal cells. Most freshwater and saltwater fish maintain a salt level in their blood, but those levels are different for both types. The chloride cells in freshwater fish are designed to pump sodium, calcium, and chloride into the fish. Freshwater fish are usually more adaptable to their environment, and more “stable” than saltwater fish. (Freshwater Fish). Body tissues are a huge difference in these types of fish (osmoregulation), and it shows a major difference between freshwater and saltwater fish
Ichthyologists say that there are more than 32,000 species of fishes discovered on Earth so far which is more than all the amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals combined. Still, new species are being discovered almost every day. Large areas beneath the ocean surface still remain unexplored. It is predicted that there might be more species of fish which are hidden from the eyes of humans till now. All fish differ in sizes. A fish can be as big as a 51 ft long Whale/Shark or as small as an 8mm Stout infant fish. Common type of fish include; gold-fish, Drum, Spadefish, Trout, Skate, Thalla, Tuna, Hogfish, Wahoo, Grunt, Monkfish, Roughy etc. Some organisms which are considered to be a fish actually do not fall into the category of fish. Examples include; shellfish, cuttlefish, starfish, crayfish and jellyfish.