Holocephali is a subclass of cartilaginous fish. The only living holocephalans are the three families of chimaeras, but the group also includes many extinct members and was more diverse during the Pal
British paleontologist Arthur Smith Woodward, who allied plate-like Paleozoic fish teeth with chimaeras and who erected the order Bradyodonti
A generalized male Chimaera (fig. 1), displaying the dorsal fin spine (fig. 2-5), the cephalic clasper (fig. 6-7), pelvic claspers (fig. 9), prepelvic tenacula (fig. 10) and tooth plates (fig. 11-12)
The cartilaginous skeleton of a female Chimaera, with key anatomical details labeled
Chimaeras are cartilaginous fish in the order Chimaeriformes, known informally as ghost sharks, rat fish, spookfish, or rabbit fish; the last two names are also applied, respectively, to the ray-finne
Deep-sea chimaera photographed by the NOAAS Okeanos Explorer. Visible on its snout are tiny pores which lead to electroreceptor cells.
Callorhinchus callorynchus