1.
Animal
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Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia. The animal kingdom emerged as a clade within Apoikozoa as the group to the choanoflagellates. Animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and independently at some point in their lives and their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later in their lives. All animals are heterotrophs, they must ingest other organisms or their products for sustenance, most known animal phyla appeared in the fossil record as marine species during the Cambrian explosion, about 542 million years ago. Animals can be divided broadly into vertebrates and invertebrates, vertebrates have a backbone or spine, and amount to less than five percent of all described animal species. They include fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals, the remaining animals are the invertebrates, which lack a backbone. These include molluscs, arthropods, annelids, nematodes, flatworms, cnidarians, ctenophores, the study of animals is called zoology. The word animal comes from the Latin animalis, meaning having breath, the biological definition of the word refers to all members of the kingdom Animalia, encompassing creatures as diverse as sponges, jellyfish, insects, and humans. Aristotle divided the world between animals and plants, and this was followed by Carl Linnaeus, in the first hierarchical classification. In Linnaeuss original scheme, the animals were one of three kingdoms, divided into the classes of Vermes, Insecta, Pisces, Amphibia, Aves, and Mammalia. Since then the last four have all been subsumed into a single phylum, in 1874, Ernst Haeckel divided the animal kingdom into two subkingdoms, Metazoa and Protozoa. The protozoa were later moved to the kingdom Protista, leaving only the metazoa, thus Metazoa is now considered a synonym of Animalia. Animals have several characteristics that set apart from other living things. Animals are eukaryotic and multicellular, which separates them from bacteria and they are heterotrophic, generally digesting food in an internal chamber, which separates them from plants and algae. They are also distinguished from plants, algae, and fungi by lacking cell walls. All animals are motile, if only at life stages. In most animals, embryos pass through a stage, which is a characteristic exclusive to animals. With a few exceptions, most notably the sponges and Placozoa and these include muscles, which are able to contract and control locomotion, and nerve tissues, which send and process signals
2.
Laboratory mouse
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The laboratory mouse is a small mammal of the order Rodentia which is bred and used for scientific research. Laboratory mice are usually of the species Mus musculus and they are the most commonly used mammalian research model and are used for research in genetics, psychology, medicine and other scientific disciplines. Mice belong to the Euarchontoglires clade, which includes humans, the laboratory mouse genome has been sequenced and many mouse genes have human homologues. Other mouse species sometimes used in research include the American white-footed mouse. During the 18th Century Joseph Priestley and Antoine Lavoisier both used mice to study respiration, in the early part of the 20th century Clarence Cook Little, a Harvard undergraduate was conducting studies on mouse genetics in the laboratory of William Ernest Castle. Together they generated the DBA inbred mouse strain and initiated the systematic generation of inbred strains, the mouse has since been used extensively as a model organism and is associated with many important biological discoveries of the 20th and 21st Centuries. The Jackson laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine is currently one of the worlds largest suppliers of laboratory mice, the laboratory is also the worlds source for more than 8,000 strains of genetically defined mice and is home of the Mouse Genome Informatics database. Breeding onset occurs at about 50 days of age in females and males, although females may have their first estrus at 25–40 days. Mice are polyestrous and breed year round, ovulation is spontaneous, the duration of the estrous cycle is 4–5 days and lasts about 12 hours, occurring in the evening. Vaginal smears are useful in timed matings to determine the stage of the estrous cycle, mating can be confirmed by the presence of a copulatory plug in the vagina up to 24 hours post-copulation. The presence of sperm on a smear is also a reliable indicator of mating. The average gestation period is 20 days, a fertile postpartum estrus occurs 14–24 hours following parturition, and simultaneous lactation and gestation prolongs gestation by 3–10 days owing to delayed implantation. The average litter size is 10–12 during optimum production, but is highly strain-dependent, as a general rule, inbred mice tend to have longer gestation periods and smaller litters than outbred and hybrid mice. The young are called pups and weigh 0. 5–1.5 g at birth, are hairless, pups are weaned at 3 weeks of age when they weigh about 10–12 g. If the female does not mate during the postpartum estrus, she resumes cycling 2–5 days post-weaning, newborn males are distinguished from newborn females by noting the greater anogenital distance and larger genital papilla in the male. This is best accomplished by lifting the tails of littermates and comparing perineums, Mice are mammals of the Glires clade, which means they are amongst the closest relatives of humans along with lagomorphs, treeshrews, flying lemurs and other primates. Laboratory mice are the species as the house mouse, however, they are often very different in behaviour. There are hundreds of established inbred, outbred, and transgenic strains, a strain, in reference to rodents, is a group in which all members are as nearly as possible genetically identical
3.
Convergent evolution
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Convergent evolution is the independent evolution of similar features in species of different lineages. Convergent evolution creates analogous structures that have similar form or function but were not present in the last common ancestor of those groups, the cladistic term for the same phenomenon is homoplasy. The recurrent evolution of flight is an example, as flying insects, birds. Functionally similar features that have arisen through convergent evolution are analogous, whereas homologous structures or traits have a common origin, bird, bat and pterosaur wings are analogous structures, but their forelimbs are homologous, sharing an ancestral state despite serving different functions. The opposite of convergence is divergent evolution, where related species evolve different traits, convergent evolution is similar to but different from parallel evolution. Many instances of convergent evolution are known in plants, including the development of C4 photosynthesis, seed dispersal by fleshy fruits adapted to be eaten by animals. In morphology, analogous traits arise when different species live in similar ways and/or a similar environment, when occupying similar ecological niches similar problems can lead to similar solutions. The British anatomist Richard Owen was the first to identify the difference between analogies and homologies. In biochemistry, physical and chemical constraints on mechanisms have caused some active site arrangements such as the triad to evolve independently in separate enzyme superfamilies. In his 1989 book Wonderful Life, Stephen Jay Gould argued that if one could rewind the tape of life the same conditions were encountered again, evolution could take a very different course. In cladistics, a homoplasy is a trait shared by two or more taxa for any other than that they share a common ancestry. Taxa which do share ancestry are part of the same clade, homoplastic traits caused by convergence are therefore, from the point of view of cladistics, confounding factors which could lead to an incorrect analysis. In some cases, it is difficult to tell whether a trait has been lost and then re-evolved convergently, or whether a gene has simply been switched off, such a re-emerged trait is called an atavism. From a mathematical standpoint, a gene has a steadily decreasing probability of retaining potential functionality over time. When two species are similar in a character, evolution is defined as parallel if the ancestors were also similar. When the ancestral forms are unspecified or unknown, or the range of traits considered is not clearly specified, the enzymology of proteases provides some of the clearest examples of convergent evolution. These examples reflect the intrinsic chemical constraints on enzymes, leading evolution to converge on equivalent solutions independently and repeatedly, serine and cysteine proteases use different amino acid functional groups as a nucleophile. In order to activate that nucleophile, they orient an acidic, the chemical and physical constraints on enzyme catalysis have caused identical triad arrangements to evolve independently more than 20 times in different enzyme superfamilies
4.
Wasp
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A wasp is any insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is neither a bee nor an ant. The Apocrita have an evolutionary ancestor and form a clade, wasps as a group do not form a clade. The most commonly known wasps, such as jackets and hornets, are in the family Vespidae and are eusocial, living together in a nest with an egg-laying queen. Eusociality is favoured by the unusual system of sex determination in Hymenoptera. However, the majority of species are solitary, with each adult female living and breeding independently. Many of the wasps are parasitoidal, meaning that they raise their young by laying eggs on or in other insects. Unlike true parasites, the larvae eventually kill their hosts. Solitary wasps parasitize almost every pest insect, making wasps valuable in horticulture for biological pest control of such as whitefly in tomatoes. Wasps first appeared in the record in the Jurassic. They are a successful and diverse group of insects with tens of thousands of described species, the largest social wasp is the Asian giant hornet, at up to 5 centimetres in length, among the largest solitary wasps is the giant scoliid of Indonesia, Megascolia procer. Some are predators, whether to feed themselves or to provision their nests, many, notably the cuckoo wasps, are kleptoparasites, laying eggs in the nests of other wasps. The name Wasp has been used for warships and other military equipment. The wasps are a paraphyletic grouping of hundreds of thousands of species, consisting of the narrow-waisted Apocrita without the ants. The Hymenoptera also contain the somewhat wasplike but unwaisted Symphyta, the sawflies, Hymenoptera in the form of Symphyta first appeared in the fossil record in the Lower Triassic. Apocrita, wasps in the sense, appeared in the Jurassic. Fig wasps with modern features first appeared in the Lower Cretaceous of the Crato Formation in Brazil. The Vespidae include the extinct genus Palaeovespa, seven species of which are known from the Eocene rocks of the Florissant fossil beds of Colorado, also found in Baltic amber are crown wasps of the genus Electrostephanus. Wasps are a group, estimated at over a hundred thousand described species around the world
5.
Stinger
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A stinger, or sting, is a sharp organ found in various animals capable of injecting venom, usually by piercing the epidermis of another animal. An insect sting is complicated by its introduction of venom, although not all stings are venomous, bites, which can introduce saliva as well as additional pathogens and diseases, are often confused with stings. Stinging insects produce a painful swelling of the skin, the severity of the lesion varying according to the location of the sting, the identity of the insect and the sensitivity of the subject. In a small number of cases the second occasion of a bee or wasp sting causes an allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis. Hornets, some ants, centipedes, and scorpions also sting, a few insects leave their stinger in the wound, but this is overstated. A sting, and especially multiple stings, may rise to severe systemic symptoms which may lead to death. Among arthropods, a sting or stinger is an organ, often connected with a venom gland and adapted to inflict a wound by piercing. Stings are usually located at the rear of the animal, animals with stings include bees, wasps and scorpions. In all stinging Hymenoptera the sting is a modified ovipositor, unlike most other stings, honey bee workers stings are strongly barbed and lodge in the flesh of mammals upon use, tearing free from the honey bees body, killing the bee within minutes. The sting has its own ganglion, and it continues to saw into the targets flesh and this trait is of obvious disadvantage to the individual but protects the hive from attacks by large animals. The barbs of a honey bees attack are only suicidal if the skin is elastic, as is characteristic of such as birds and mammals. The sting of all other bees and other sting-bearing organisms is not barbed. The stings of wasps, such as those of the Polistes versicolor. This helps in the immobilization of the animal or of the body parts receiving the venom. Spiders only bite, although some tarantulas have urticating hairs, certain caterpillars also have urticating hairs. Organs that perform functions in non-arthropods are often referred to as stings. These organs include the modified dermal denticle of the stingray, the spurs on the hind legs of the male platypus. The term sting was historically used for the fang of a snake
6.
Spider
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Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other orders of organisms, Spiders are found worldwide on every continent except for Antarctica, and have become established in nearly every habitat with the exceptions of air and sea colonization. As of November 2015, at least 45,700 spider species, anatomically, spiders differ from other arthropods in that the usual body segments are fused into two tagmata, the cephalothorax and abdomen, and joined by a small, cylindrical pedicel. Unlike insects, spiders do not have antennae, in all except the most primitive group, the Mesothelae, spiders have the most centralized nervous systems of all arthropods, as all their ganglia are fused into one mass in the cephalothorax. Unlike most arthropods, spiders have no extensor muscles in their limbs and their abdomens bear appendages that have been modified into spinnerets that extrude silk from up to six types of glands. Spider webs vary widely in size, shape and the amount of thread used. It now appears that the orb web may be one of the earliest forms. Spider-like arachnids with silk-producing spigots appeared in the Devonian period about 386 million years ago, true spiders have been found in Carboniferous rocks from 318 to 299 million years ago, and are very similar to the most primitive surviving suborder, the Mesothelae. The main groups of spiders, Mygalomorphae and Araneomorphae, first appeared in the Triassic period. It is estimated that 25 million tons of spiders kill 400–800 million tons of prey per year. Spiders use a range of strategies to capture prey, trapping it in sticky webs, lassoing it with sticky bolas, mimicking the prey to avoid detection. Spiders guts are too narrow to take solids, and they liquefy their food by flooding it with digestive enzymes and they also grind food with the bases of their pedipalps, as arachnids do not have the mandibles that crustaceans and insects have. Male spiders identify themselves by a variety of courtship rituals to avoid being eaten by the females. Males of most species survive a few matings, limited mainly by their life spans. Females weave silk egg-cases, each of which may contain hundreds of eggs, females of many species care for their young, for example by carrying them around or by sharing food with them. A minority of species are social, building communal webs that may house anywhere from a few to 50,000 individuals, social behavior ranges from precarious toleration, as in the widow spiders, to co-operative hunting and food-sharing. Although most spiders live for at most two years, tarantulas and other spiders can live up to 25 years in captivity. While the venom of a few species is dangerous to humans, scientists are now researching the use of venom in medicine
7.
Chelicerae
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The chelicerae /kəˈlɪsəriː/, are the mouthparts of the Chelicerata, an arthropod group that includes arachnids, horseshoe crabs, and sea spiders. Commonly referred to as jaws, some chelicerae, such as found in spiders, are hollow and contain venom glands. Chelicerae can be divided into three kinds, jackknife chelicerae, scissor chelicerae, and 3-segmented chelate chelicerae, the jackknife chelicera is subchelate and is composed of two segments. This type of chelicera occurs exclusively in the Tetrapulmonata, jackknife chelicera presents two different forms, orthognathous and labidognathous. Orthognathous chelicerae are articulated in a manner that enables movements of the parallel to the body axis. This kind of chelicera occurs in the Liphistiomorphae and Mygalomorphae spiders and in the related orders Amblypygi, labidognathous chelicerae moves at right angles to the body axis. This kind of chelicera is rotated and occurs exclusively in the Araneomorphae spiders, the chelicerae consist of a base segment that articulates with the cephalothorax and a fang portion that articulates with the base segment. All spiders have venom glands and can inject the venom through openings in the tips of their fangs when biting prey. The glands that produce this venom are located in the two segments of the chelicerae, and, in most spiders, extend beyond the chelicerae and into the cephalothorax. The basal portion includes all or part of the venom glands. Such control permits a spider to administer either a dry bite, the control is also necessary for actions such as the spitting of venomous silk by members of the family Scytodidae, they depend on that mechanism both in hunting and defence. Even the tips of the fangs of the large spider shown above are quite sharp. Some spider bites, such as those of the Sydney funnel-web spider, are reported to have penetrated toenails, the scissor chelicera is chelate and composed of two segments and occurs in the orders Pseudoscorpiones and Solifugae. This is the condition and occurs in arachnids such as the Scorpiones. The chelifores of the Pycnogonida may be homologous to chelicerae, media related to Chelicerae at Wikimedia Commons
8.
Centipede
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Centipedes are arthropods belonging to the class Chilopoda of the subphylum Myriapoda. They are elongated metameric creatures with one pair of legs per body segment, Centipedes are known to be highly venomous, and often inject paralyzing venom. Despite the name, centipedes can have a number of legs. Centipedes always have an odd number of pairs of legs, therefore, no centipede has exactly 100 legs. A key trait uniting this group is a pair of claws or forcipules formed from a modified first appendage. Their size can range from a few millimetres in the smaller lithobiomorphs and geophilomorphs to about 30 cm in the largest scolopendromorphs, Centipedes can be found in a wide variety of environments. They normally have a drab coloration combining shades of brown and red, cavernicolous and subterranean species may lack pigmentation, and many tropical scolopendromorphs have bright aposematic colours. Worldwide, an estimated 8,000 species of centipedes are thought to exist, Centipedes have a wide geographical range, where they even reach beyond the Arctic Circle. They are found in an array of habitats from tropical rainforests to deserts. Within these habitats, centipedes require a moist microhabitat because they lack the waxy cuticle of insects and arachnids, accordingly, they are found in soil and leaf litter, under stones and dead wood, and inside logs. Centipedes are among the largest terrestrial predators, and often contribute significantly to the invertebrate predatory biomass in terrestrial ecosystems. Only one species, Scolopendra cataracta, is known to be amphibious and is believed to hunt aquatic or amphibious invertebrates, Centipedes have a rounded or flattened head, bearing a pair of antennae at the forward margin. They have a pair of elongated mandibles, and two pairs of maxillae, the first pair of maxillae form the lower lip, and bear short palps. The first pair of limbs stretch forward from the body to cover the remainder of the mouth and these limbs, or maxillipeds, end in sharp claws and include venom glands that help the animal to kill or paralyze its prey. Many species of centipedes lack eyes, but some possess a number of ocelli. However, these eyes are capable of discerning light and dark. In some species, the first pair of legs at the end of the centipede acts as sense organs similar to antennae. Unusual sense organs found in groups are the organs of Tömösváry
9.
Scorpion
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Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the order Scorpiones. Scorpions range in size from 9 mm /0.3 in. to 23 cm /9 in, the evolutionary history of scorpions goes back to the Silurian era 430 million years ago. They have adapted to a range of environmental conditions and can now be found on all continents except Antarctica. Scorpions number about 1750 described species, with 13 extant families recognised to date, only about 25 of these species are known to have venom capable of killing a human being. The taxonomy has undergone changes and is likely to change further, Scorpion stings are painful but are usually harmless to humans. For stings from species found in North America, no treatment is normally needed for healthy adults, although care should be sought for children. More harmful stings from species found in South America, Africa, Scorpions are found on all major land masses except Antarctica. The greatest diversity of scorpions in the Northern Hemisphere is to be found in the areas lying between latitudes 23° N and 38° N. Above these latitudes, the diversity decreases, with the northernmost natural occurrence of scorpions being the northern scorpion Paruroctonus boreus at Medicine Hat, Alberta, five colonies of scorpions have established themselves in Sheerness on the Isle of Sheppey in the United Kingdom. This small population has been resident since the 1860s, having arrived with imported fruit from Africa. This scorpion species is small and completely harmless to humans, at just over 51° N, this marks the northernmost limit where scorpions live in the wild. There are thirteen families and about 1,750 described species and subspecies of scorpions, in addition, there are 111 described taxa of extinct scorpions. This classification is based on that of Soleglad & Fet, which replaced the older, additional taxonomic changes are from papers by Soleglad et al. The following classification covers extant taxa to the rank of family, L. Koch,1837 Family Buthidae C. L. The oldest known scorpions lived around 430 million years ago in the Silurian period and these first scorpions were believed to have had gills instead of the present forms book lungs though this has subsequently been refuted. The oldest Gondwanan scorpiones comprise the earliest known terrestrial animals from Gondwana, currently,111 fossil species of scorpion are known. Unusually for arachnids, there are species of Palaeozoic scorpion than Mesozoic or Cenozoic ones. The eurypterids, marine creatures that lived during the Palaeozoic era, share several traits with scorpions
10.
Insect
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Insects are a class of hexapod invertebrates within the arthropod phylum that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body, three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes and one pair of antennae. They are the most diverse group of animals on the planet, including more than a million described species, the number of extant species is estimated at between six and ten million, and potentially represent over 90% of the differing animal life forms on Earth. Insects may be found in all environments, although only a small number of species reside in the oceans. The life cycles of insects vary but most hatch from eggs, insect growth is constrained by the inelastic exoskeleton and development involves a series of molts. The immature stages can differ from the adults in structure, habit and habitat, Insects that undergo 3-stage metamorphosis lack a pupal stage and adults develop through a series of nymphal stages. The higher level relationship of the Hexapoda is unclear, fossilized insects of enormous size have been found from the Paleozoic Era, including giant dragonflies with wingspans of 55 to 70 cm. The most diverse insect groups appear to have coevolved with flowering plants, adult insects typically move about by walking, flying or sometimes swimming. As it allows for rapid yet stable movement, many insects adopt a tripedal gait in which they walk with their legs touching the ground in alternating triangles, Insects are the only invertebrates to have evolved flight. Many insects spend at least part of their lives under water, with adaptations that include gills. Some species, such as water striders, are capable of walking on the surface of water, Insects are mostly solitary, but some, such as certain bees, ants and termites, are social and live in large, well-organized colonies. Some insects, such as earwigs, show maternal care, guarding their eggs, Insects can communicate with each other in a variety of ways. Male moths can sense the pheromones of female moths over great distances, other species communicate with sounds, crickets stridulate, or rub their wings together, to attract a mate and repel other males. Lampyridae in the beetle order communicate with light, humans regard certain insects as pests, and attempt to control them using insecticides and a host of other techniques. Some insects damage crops by feeding on sap, leaves or fruits, a few parasitic species are pathogenic. Some insects perform complex ecological roles, blow-flies, for example, help consume carrion, Many other insects are considered ecologically beneficial as predators and a few provide direct economic benefit. Silkworms and bees have been used extensively by humans for the production of silk and honey, in some cultures, people eat the larvae or adults of certain insects. Insect first appears documented in English in 1601 in Hollands translation of Pliny, translations of Aristotles term also form the usual word for insect in Welsh, Serbo-Croatian, Russian, etc. The evolutionary relationship of insects to other animal groups remains unclear, in the Pancrustacea theory, insects, together with Entognatha, Remipedia, and Cephalocarida, make up a natural clade labeled Miracrustacea
11.
Bee
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Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their role in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the European honey bee, for producing honey and beeswax. Bees are a lineage within the superfamily Apoidea, presently considered as a clade Anthophila. There are nearly 20,000 known species of bees in seven to nine recognized families, though many are undescribed and they are found on every continent except Antarctica, in every habitat on the planet that contains insect-pollinated flowering plants. Some species including honey bees, bumblebees, and stingless bees live socially in colonies, Bees are adapted for feeding on nectar and pollen, the former primarily as an energy source and the latter primarily for protein and other nutrients. Most pollen is used as food for larvae, Bee pollination is important both ecologically and commercially, the decline in wild bees has increased the value of pollination by commercially managed hives of honey bees. The most common bees in the Northern Hemisphere are the Halictidae, or sweat bees, vertebrate predators of bees include birds such as bee-eaters, insect predators include beewolves and dragonflies. Human beekeeping or apiculture has been practised for millennia, since at least the times of Ancient Egypt, apart from honey and pollination, honey bees produce beeswax, royal jelly and propolis. Bees have appeared in mythology and folklore, again since ancient times, and they feature in works of literature as varied as Virgils Georgics, Beatrix Potters The Tale of Mrs Tittlemouse, yeatss poem The Lake Isle of Innisfree. Bee larvae are included in the Javanese dish botok tawon, where they are steamed with shredded coconut. The ancestors of bees were wasps in the family Crabronidae, which were predators of other insects. The switch from insect prey to pollen may have resulted from the consumption of insects which were flower visitors and were partially covered with pollen when they were fed to the wasp larvae. This same evolutionary scenario may have occurred within the vespoid wasps, until recently, the oldest non-compression bee fossil had been found in New Jersey amber, Cretotrigona prisca of Cretaceous age, a corbiculate bee. A bee fossil from the early Cretaceous, Melittosphex burmensis, is considered an extinct lineage of pollen-collecting Apoidea sister to the modern bees. Derived features of its place it clearly within the bees. By the Eocene there was considerable diversity among eusocial bee lineages. The highly eusocial corbiculate Apidae appeared roughly 87 Mya, and the Allodapini around 53 Mya, the Colletidae appear as fossils only from the late Oligocene to early Miocene. The Melittidae are known from Palaeomacropis eocenicus in the Early Eocene, the Megachilidae are known from trace fossils from the Middle Eocene. The Andrenidae are known from the Eocene-Oligocene boundary, around 34 Mya, the Halictidae first appear in the Early Eocene with species found in amber
12.
Ovipositor
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The ovipositor is an organ used by some animals for the laying of eggs. In insects an ovipositor consists of a maximum of three pairs of appendages, the details and morphology of the ovipositor vary, but typically its form is adapted to functions such as transmitting the egg, preparing a place for it, and placing it properly. In some insects the organ is used merely to attach the egg to some surface, grasshoppers use their ovipositors to force a burrow into the earth to receive the eggs. Cicadas pierce the wood of twigs with their ovipositors to insert the eggs, sawflies slit the tissues of plants by means of the ovipositor and so do some species of long-horned grasshoppers. In the wasp genus Megarhyssa, the females have a slender ovipositor several inches long that is used to drill into the wood of tree trunks. These species are parasitic in the stage on the larvae of horntail wasps. Impressively, the ovipositor of the giant ichneumon wasp is the longest egg-laying organ known among biologists, the stings of the Aculeata are ovipositors, highly modified and with associated venom glands. They are used to prey, or as defensive weapons. The penetrating sting plus venom allows the wasp to lay eggs with less risk of injury from the host, in some cases the injection also introduces virus particles that suppress the hosts immune system and prevent it from destroying the eggs. However, in virtually all stinging Hymenoptera, the ovipositor is no used for egg-laying. An exception is the family Chrysididae, members of the Hymenoptera, in species such as Chrysis ignita have reduced stinging apparatus. In the breeding season of some fish, such as bitterlings. They use it when depositing eggs in the cavity of the pond mussel. Seahorses have an ovipositor for introducing eggs into the pouch of the male. The Alien franchise features numerous notable depictions of ovipositors, The Alien queen in the film Aliens is shown suspended in her nest using a giant ovipositor to lay the alien eggs. Unlike most real-life examples of oviposition however, the ovipositor is shown to be detachable, also in Aliens, we get to see the underbelly of live facehuggers, which notably includes the ovipositor used to insert the chestbursters into their chosen hosts. The BBC documentary Walking with Dinosaurs portrayed a Diplodocus mother using an ovipositor to lay her eggs, in the Japanese kaiju film Gamera vs. Jiger, the titular adversary injects an egg into Gameras living body with an ovipositor. The Megopteran in ITVs Primeval uses an ovipositor evolved from either wasps or ants to lay eggs into its hosts
13.
Polistes fuscatus
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Polistes fuscatus, whose common name is the golden or northern paper wasp, is widely found throughout southern Canada, the United States, and Central America. It often nests around human development, however, it greatly prefers areas in which wood is readily available for use as nest material, therefore they are also found near and in woodlands and savannas. P. fuscatus is a wasp that is part of a complex society based around a single dominant queen along with other cofoundresses. The Polistinae comprise four tribes, including Polistini, Epiponini, Mischocyttarini and it is characterized by two major behaviors, colony founding and reproductive dominance. Colony founding can be independent or swarm founding. Independent founding consists of the founding of small, simple nests that are constructed without an envelope by a single or few queens with one or several inseminated egg-layers. Swarm founding includes the construction of large swarms and are founded by multiple queens with many workers, P. fuscatus is part of the Polistini tribe and in the genus Polistes. Polistes is one of the five independent-founding groups, a study in which bootstrap analysis was conducted indicated that P. fuscatus is part of the New World subgenera, Fuscopolistes. In addition to P. fuscatus, within Fuscopolistes are P. bellicosus, P. apaches, P. aurifer, P. carolina, P. dorsalis, the physical characteristics of the P. fuscatus are highly dependent on the geographic location of its habitat. Throughout the United States, three color pattern trends represent different regions throughout the country, the male is identified by its darkened apical flagellomeres in addition to its darkened dorsal surface of the apical flagellomeres that is common to other species of wasps. Northern females on the hand are easily identified by the blackening of their entire bodies which may or may not have markings of other colors. Many southern P. fuscatus individuals, however, have additional markings, the facial and abdominal markings of P. Furthermore, some wasps have these facial and abdominal patterns in brown and black instead of yellow. These markings colors, however, are influenced by the geographic location of the wasp. The length of P. fuscatus often ranges between 15 and 21 mm. The fore wing length ranges between 11.5 and 17.0 mm, in general, the wing of males is above 13.0 mm. Both males and females have rather slender bodies and have a waist that connects the thorax to the abdomen, the female has a venomous sting. With length and coloration also varies throughout the year of when the wasps emerge. P. fuscatuss distribution ranges from southern Canada to the United States to Central America, the most northern range is Chilcotin, British Columbia, and reaches as far south as Honduras
14.
Polistes exclamans
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Polistes exclamans is a social wasp and is part of the family Vespidae of the order Hymenoptera. It is found throughout the United States, Mexico, the Bahamas, due to solitary nest founding by queens, P. exclamans has extended its range in the past few decades and now covers the eastern half of the United States, as well as part of the north. This expansion is typically attributed to changing climate and temperatures. P. exclamans has three specific castes, including males, workers, and queens, but the hierarchy is further distinguished by age. The older the wasp is, the higher it is in ranking within the colony, in most P. exclamans nests, there is one queen who lays all the eggs in the colony. Since P. exclamans live in small, open combed nests, they are often subject to predators and parasites, such as Chalcoela iphitalis, Elasmus polistes. P. exclamans have defense and recognition strategies that help protect against these predators, Polistes exclamans is part of subfamily Polistinae within the hymenopteran family Vespidae. Polistinae is the second largest of six subfamilies, containing around 950 species. It is made up of four tribes, P. exclamans is part of Polistini, there are two forms of Polistes exclamans in the United States, typical and variable. Although this form’s color can vary, it almost always has some yellow coloring, both the propodeum and the mesonotum are marked with yellow. The propodeum normally has four stripes, whereas the mesonotum has yellow lines. It also may have markings on its head. The wings, however, are not yellow in color or yellow tinged like some other wasps but are infuscate, the typical form often can be confused with Polistes fuscatus, Polistes crinitus, or Polistes minor. The variable form is red-brown in coloring, the middle of the flagellum, the base of the abdominal segments, and the outer side of the mid and hind tibiae are infuscate or black colored, as are the wings. Instead of yellow markings, the form has pale ivory-white markings that are dispersed throughout the body. P. exclamans have antennae banded with red, black and yellow, in females, the fore wing length can range from 13.0 to 16.5 mm and in males the fore wings can range from 12.0 to 15.0 mm. The extent of ferruginous markings is variable, although no distinguishing structural features have been found to separate the workers and queens, the male is easily identified by its bulging eyes, subquadrate clypeus, and slender antennae. P. exclamans males are more variable in external morphology compared to females
15.
Dolichovespula arenaria
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The Dolichovespula genus falls under the family of Vespidae, which identifies wasps. Wasps, including D. arenaria, fall under the order of Hymenoptera, making wasps relatives of ants, bees, and sawflies, the yellowjackets are divided into ground-nesting and aerial nesting genera, Vespula and Dolichovespula respectively. Within the Dolichovespula genus, there are eighteen species, including D. arenaria and other such as D. albida, D. alpicola, Dolichovespula saxonica. D. arenaria can be identified by the medially interrupted or incised apical fasciae of terga 1 and 2. They are yellow in color and can be differentiated by the other yellow-colored wasps, D. adulterina, in the majority of the population the ocular sinus is yellow, but some melanic males have a black area that reaches the lower margin of sinus. The queen has large black spots on terga 4 and 5. Males have spots on their band on terga 4 and 5. Nest size ranges from 1-6 combs, and are out of dull grey paper. The common aerial yellowjacket lives across Canada and the United States and they occur from north central Alaska to as far south as New Mexico and Arizona. D. arenaria are in one of the most common aerial yellowjackets found in eastern North America. D. arenaria lives in arboreal to subterranean habitats and their nests are made from paper-like material and are usually found in trees and shrubs. In urban settings, their nests are found on buildings. A queen initiates a colony in the spring by choosing a site, then, the eggs hatch from the brood cell and the queen feeds the larvae. These larvae eventually become workers and the continues to grow. The workers are distinct from the queen. In general, these colonies flourish for roughly a year before they dwindle as the sets in. Dolichovespula arenaria workers are known to feed on live arthropods of a wide variety such as grasshoppers, crickets, caterpillars, spiders, flies, lacewings. They also prey on larvae of the fall webworm, as well as young hummingbirds, in general, they are not attracted to protein baits
16.
Parischnogaster striatula
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Parischnogaster striatula is a species of social hover wasps found in Southeast Asia. Their nests are uniquely shaped, mimic their surroundings and, like the other Stenogastrinae social wasps and they are also unique in their use of glandular secretion when laying eggs. P. striatula is also different than typical wasps because the queens are not the ones who possess reproductive capabilities. This wasp is known for fiercely protecting its nest against enemies. P. striatula is under the subfamily Stenogastrinae, sometimes known as hover wasps, together, these two species make up the striatula group. P. striatula has black pigmentation on its clypeus, with inner and outer eye stripes. The adults are recognizable by their distinctive hovering flight and their nests lack a nest pedicel, and implant on thread-like suspensions such as rootlets, thin stems and artificial wires. They consist of cells arranged around a central tube, and are constructed from mud, mud mixed with chewed vegetable material. P. striatula colonies do not contain many individuals, therefore the nests are small in size, P. striatula is a commonly found species in Southeast Asia, specifically the Indo-Malaysian area. Their unique nests are found in areas sheltered from rain, including along forest roads or trails, under the vaults of caves, while it is possible to find some nests close together, they do not form aggregations. The colonies are small, most do not exceed a dozen individuals. Each colony will not exceed five females, there are two distinct times of major activity, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Social interactions are frequent during the middle of the day. The colony consists of one dominant female, one or two other non-dominant females, and males, the dominant females are usually located at the top of the nest, with the non-dominant females in the middle, and males at the lower part of the nest near the entrance. There is no visual status badge among the females, females with developed ovaries look identical to females with underdeveloped ovaries, what separates the dominant females from the non-dominant females is the size of their ovaries. The female P. striatula with the largest ovaries becomes the dominant female of the colony, the dominant females are the ones that lay eggs and stay on the nest for the longest periods of times. The non-dominant females are usually the ones to construct the nest and they also forage for food and mud, which they use to build the nest. The females are very attentive to wasps approaching their nest
17.
Caterpillar
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Caterpillars /ˈkætərˌpɪlər/ are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera. As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, caterpillars of most species are herbivorous, but not all, some are insectivorous, even cannibalistic. Some feed on other products, for example clothes moths feed on wool. Caterpillars as a rule are voracious feeders and many of them are among the most serious of agricultural pests. In fact many moth species are best known in their caterpillar stages because of the damage cause to fruits and other agricultural produce, whereas the moths are obscure. Conversely, various species of caterpillar are valued as sources of silk, as human or animal food, the origins of the word caterpillar date from the early 16th century. They derive from Middle English catirpel, catirpeller, probably an alteration of Old North French catepelose, cate, cat + pelose, caterpillars have soft bodies that can grow rapidly between moults. Only the head capsule is hardened, the mandibles are tough and sharp for chewing leaves. Behind the mandibles of the caterpillar are the spinnerets, for manipulating silk, antennae are present on either side of the labrum, but small and relatively inconspicuous. Some larvae of the Hymenoptera order can appear like the caterpillars of the Lepidoptera, such larvae are mainly seen in the sawfly family. Caterpillars can be confused with the larvae of sawflies, lepidopteran larvae can be differentiated by, the numbers of pairs of pro-legs, sawfly larvae have 6 while caterpillars have up to 5 pairs. The number of stemmata, the larvae have only two, while a caterpillar has six. The presence of crochets on the prolegs, these are absent in the Symphyta, sawfly larvae have an invariably smooth head capsule with no cleavage lines, while lepidopterous caterpillars bear an inverted Y or V. Many animals feed on caterpillars as they are rich in protein, as a result, caterpillars have evolved various means of defense. The appearance of a caterpillar can often repel a predator, its markings and certain body parts can make it seem poisonous, or bigger in size and thus threatening, some types of caterpillars are indeed poisonous. Caterpillars have evolved defenses against physical conditions such as cold, hot or dry environmental conditions, some Arctic species like Gynaephora groenlandica have special basking and aggregation behaviours apart from physiological adaptations to remain in a dormant state. Many caterpillars are cryptically colored and resemble the plants on which they feed and they may even have parts that mimic plant parts such as thorns. Their size varies from as little as 1 mm to about 75 millimetres, some look like objects in the environment such as bird droppings
18.
Urticating hair
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Urtica is Latin for nettle, and hairs that urticate are characteristic of this type of plant, and many other plants in several families. This term also refers to types of barbed hairs that cover the dorsal. Many tarantula species eject hairs from their abdomens, directing them toward potential attackers and these hairs can embed themselves in the other animals skin or eyes, causing physical irritation, usually to great discomfort. The most common form of urticating hairs in plants are typified by nettles, the points of these hairs usually break off in the wound, and the acrid fluid is pressed into it. Various plants unrelated to true nettles possess similar defensive hairs, several lepidopteran families include species whose larvae bear urticating hairs. Families prominent in this include the following. Adults of some species also have urticating scales, and some species shed some of their hairs as defense for their pupae. The urticating setae or spines can cause irritation when they break off, in some species these structures are hollow and connected to poison-producing cells, functioning like a hypodermic needle. Generally most hairs are irritating, but some are dangerous to the eyes and respiratory tract. Certain species of Lonomia in the family Saturniidae actually can inject venom that is life-threatening to humans, the stings are not part of a deliberate attack, but are mainly the result of brushing against the spines. However, many species whose larvae are armed with such hairs have behavioral patterns adapted to present the urticating hairs as a defensive threat, for example, many larvae in the family Lasiocampidae bear dense bands of short stinging hairs across their thoracic segments. The hairs are normally retracted into a fold in the skin, but if the caterpillar is disturbed, it everts the folds and displays the hairs. If seriously stimulated or gripped, lasiocampid larvae are likely to lash about, toxins from the broken hairs may spill out, causing dermatitis on the surface of the skin. In spite of such defenses, some species of birds feed avidly on hairy caterpillars, examples of avian predators other than cuckoos that feed on hairy caterpillars include at least tens of species from several continents. Urticating hairs are found in about 90% of the species of tarantula found in the New World and they are not found in tarantulas from other parts of the world. In elder ages their coloration shifts to match the tone of abdomen. There are six different types of urticating hair known in tarantulas, varying in size and shape, Type I Type II Type III Type IV Type V Type VI Each type of urticating hair is believed to target different enemies. Defined targets for some types are unknown
19.
Lonomia
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They are commonly known as Giant Silkworm Moth, a name also used for a wide range of other Saturniid moths. The caterpillars are themselves extremely cryptic, blending in against the bark of trees, the larvae, like most hemileucines, are covered with urticating hairs, but these caterpillars possess a uniquely potent anticoagulant venom. The effects of a dose from multiple caterpillars can be dramatic and severe, including massive internal hemorrhaging, renal failure, the resulting medical syndrome is sometimes called Lonomiasis. The LD50 of the Lonomia venom is 0.19 mg for an 18-20 g mouse, however, due to the amount of venom in the bristles of the caterpillar. While there are more than a species in the genus, the most troublesome species is Lonomia obliqua. As anticoagulants have some beneficial applications, a fair bit of the research is motivated by the possibility of deriving some pharmaceutically valuable chemicals from the toxin. L. Lonomia genus caterpillar envenomation, clinical and biological aspects, acute renal failure provoked by toxin from caterpillars of the species Lonomia obliqua. Proteases from Lonomia obliqua venomous secretions, comparison of procoagulant, fibrinolytic and amidolytic activities, veiga A. B. Ribeiro J. M. Guimaraes J. A. Saturniidae World, Pictures of all species
20.
Hemiptera
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The Hemiptera /hɛˈmɪptərə/ or true bugs are an order of insects comprising some 50,000 to 80,000 species of groups such as the cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, and shield bugs. They range in size from 1 mm to around 15 cm, the name true bugs is sometimes limited to the suborder Heteroptera. Many insects commonly known as bugs belong to other orders, for example, most hemipterans feed on plants, using their sucking and piercing mouthparts to extract plant sap. Some are parasitic while others are predators that feed on insects or small invertebrates. They live in a variety of habitats, generally terrestrial. Hemipterans are hemimetabolous, with nymphs that somewhat resemble adults. Many aphids are capable of parthenogenesis, producing young from unfertilised eggs, humans have interacted with the Hemiptera for millennia. Some species are important agricultural pests, damaging crops by the action of sucking sap. Other species have used for biological control of insect pests. Hemipterans have been cultivated for the extraction of dyestuffs cochineal and for shellac, the bed bug is a persistent parasite of humans. Cicadas have been used as food, and have appeared in literature from the Iliad in Ancient Greece. Hemiptera is the largest order of insects containing over 75,000 named species, orders with more species all have a pupal stage. The majority of species are terrestrial, including a number of important agricultural pests and these include the water boatmen, pond skaters, and giant water bugs. The fossil record of hemipterans goes back to the Carboniferous, the oldest fossils are of the Archescytinidae from the Lower Permian and are thought to be basal to the Auchenorrhyncha. Fulguromorpha and Cicadomorpha appear in the Upper Permian, as do Sternorrhyncha of the Psylloidea and Aleurodoidea, aphids and Coccoids appear in the Triassic. The Coleorrhyncha extend back to the Lower Jurassic, the Heteroptera first appeared in the Triassic. The order is now divided into four or more suborders, after the Homoptera were established as paraphyletic, the cladogram is based on one analysis of the phylogeny of the Paraneoptera by Hu Li and colleagues in 2015, using mitochondrial genome sequences and homogeneous models. It places the Sternorrhyncha as sister clade to the Thysanoptera and the lice, however, when heterogeneous models were used, Hemiptera was found to be monophyletic
21.
Ant
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Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from ancestors in the Cretaceous period, about 99 million years ago. More than 12,500 of an total of 22,000 species have been classified. They are easily identified by their antennae and the distinctive node-like structure that forms their slender waists. Larger colonies consist mostly of sterile, wingless females forming castes of workers, soldiers, nearly all ant colonies also have some fertile males called drones and one or more fertile females called queens. The colonies are described as superorganisms because the ants appear to operate as a unified entity, Ants have colonised almost every landmass on Earth. The only places lacking indigenous ants are Antarctica and a few remote or inhospitable islands, Ants thrive in most ecosystems and may form 15–25% of the terrestrial animal biomass. Their success in so many environments has been attributed to their organisation and their ability to modify habitats, tap resources. Their long co-evolution with other species has led to mimetic, commensal, parasitic, Ant societies have division of labour, communication between individuals, and an ability to solve complex problems. These parallels with human societies have long been an inspiration and subject of study, many human cultures make use of ants in cuisine, medication, and rituals. Some species are valued in their role as biological pest control agents and their ability to exploit resources may bring ants into conflict with humans, however, as they can damage crops and invade buildings. Some species, such as the red imported fire ant, are regarded as invasive species, all of these words come from West Germanic *ēmaitijǭ, and the original meaning of the word was the biter. The family Formicidae belongs to the order Hymenoptera, which also includes sawflies, bees, Ants evolved from a lineage within the aculeate wasps, and a 2013 study suggests that they are a sister group of the Apoidea. In 1966, E. O. Wilson and his colleagues identified the remains of an ant that lived in the Cretaceous period. The specimen, trapped in amber dating back to around 92 million years ago, has found in some wasps. Sphecomyrma possibly was a ground forager, while Haidomyrmex and Haidomyrmodes, older ants in the genus Sphecomyrmodes have been found in 99 million year-old amber from Myanmar. After the rise of flowering plants about 100 million years ago they diversified and assumed ecological dominance around 60 million years ago. Some groups, such as the Leptanillinae and Martialinae, are suggested to have diversified from early primitive ants that were likely to have been predators underneath the surface of the soil, during the Cretaceous period, a few species of primitive ants ranged widely on the Laurasian supercontinent
22.
Topical medication
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A topical medication is a medication that is applied to a particular place on or in the body, as opposed to systemically. Most often this means application to surfaces such as the skin or mucous membranes to treat ailments via a large range of classes including creams, foams, gels, lotions. Many topical medications are epicutaneous, meaning that they are applied directly to the skin, as a route of administration, the topical route is contrasted with the enteral route, the intravenous route, and others. A topical effect, in the sense, may refer to a local, rather than systemic. However, many topically administered drugs have effects, because they reach the circulation after being absorbed by the tissues. Topical medications differ from other types of drugs because mishandling them can lead to certain complications in a patient or administrator of the drug. Some hydrophobic chemicals, such as hormones, can be absorbed into the body after being applied to the skin in the form of a cream, gel. Transdermal patches have become a means of administering some drugs for birth control, hormone replacement therapy. One example of an antibiotic that may be applied topically is chloramphenicol, a medications potency often is changed with its base. For example, some topical steroids will be classified one or two strengths higher when moving from cream to ointment, as a rule of thumb, an ointment base is more occlusive and will drive the medication into the skin more rapidly than a solution or cream base. The manufacturer of each product has total control over the content of the base of a medication. Although containing the active ingredients, one manufacturers cream might be more acidic than the next. For example, a formulation of miconazole antifungal cream might irritate the skin less than an athlete foot formulation of miconazole cream. These variations can, on occasion, result in different clinical outcomes, no comparative potency labeling exists to ensure equal efficacy between brands of topical steroids. Studies have confirmed that the potency of some topical steroid products may differ according to manufacturer or brand, however, in a simple base like an ointment, much less variation between manufacturers is common. In dermatology, the base of a medication is often as important as the medication itself. It is extremely important to receive a medication in the correct base, a pharmacist should not substitute an ointment for a cream, or vice versa, as the potency of the medication can change. As a result, what the manufacturers marketing department chooses to list on the label of a medication might be completely different from what the form would normally be called
23.
Jellyfish
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Jellyfish or jellies are softbodied, free-swimming aquatic animals with a gelatinous umbrella-shaped bell and trailing tentacles. The bell can pulsate to acquire propulsion and locomotion, the tentacles may be utilized to capture prey or defend against predators by emitting toxins in a painful sting. Jellyfish species are classified in the subphylum Medusozoa which makes up a part of the phylum Cnidaria. Jellyfish are found in ocean, from the surface to the deep sea. Scyphozoans are exclusively marine, but some live in freshwater. Large, often colorful, jellyfish are common in coastal zones worldwide, Jellyfish have roamed the seas for at least 500 million years, and possibly 700 million years or more, making them the oldest multi-organ animal. The popular English name jellyfish has been in use since 1796 and it has traditionally also been applied to other animals sharing a superficial resemblance, for example ctenophores were included as jellyfishes. Even some scientists include the phylum ctenophora when they are referring to jellyfish, other scientists prefer to use the more all-encompassing term gelatinous zooplankton, when referring to these, together with other soft-bodied animals in the water column. As jellyfish are not true fish, which are vertebrates, the jellyfish is considered by some to be a misnomer. Public aquaria often use the terms jellies or sea jellies instead, the term jellies may have become more popular than jellyfish. In scientific literature, jelly and jellyfish are often used interchangeably, some sources may use the term jelly to refer to organisms in this taxon, as jellyfish may be considered inappropriate. Many textbooks and sources refer to only scyphozoans as true jellyfish, a group of jellyfish is sometimes called a bloom or a swarm. Bloom is usually used for a group of jellyfish that gather in a small area. Another collective name for a group of jellyfish is a smack, using swarm usually implies some kind of active ability to stay together, which a few species such as Aurelia, the moon jelly, demonstrate. Medusa jellyfish may be classified as scyphomedusae, stauromedusae, cubomedusae, or hydromedusae, the term medusa was coined by Linnaeus in 1752, alluding to the tentacled head of Medusa in Greek mythology. This term refers exclusively to the non-polyp life-stage which occurs in many cnidarians, all medusa-producing species belong to the sub-phylum Medusozoa. In biology, a medusa is a form of cnidarian in which the body is shaped like an umbrella, medusae vary from bell-shaped to the shape of a thin disk, scarcely convex above and only slightly concave below. The digestive cavity consists of the cavity and radiating canals which extend toward the margin, these canals may be simple or branching
24.
Sea anemone
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Sea anemones are a group of water-dwelling, predatory animals of the order Actiniaria. They are named for the anemone, a terrestrial flower, sea anemones are classified in the phylum Cnidaria, class Anthozoa, subclass Hexacorallia. Anthozoa often have large polyps that allow for digestion of larger prey, as cnidarians, sea anemones are related to corals, jellyfish, tube-dwelling anemones, and Hydra. Many sea anemones form symbiotic relationships with single-celled dinoflagellates, zooxanthellae or with green algae, zoochlorellae, that live within their cells. A sea anemone is a sessile polyp attached at the bottom to the surface beneath it by a foot, called a basal disc. Most are from 1.8 to 3 cm in diameter and they can have from a few tens to a few hundred tentacles. A few species are pelagic and are not attached to the bottom, instead, they have a gas chamber within the pedal disc, allowing them to float upside down in the water. The mouth, also the anus of the sea anemone, is in the middle of the oral disc surrounded by tentacles armed with many cnidocytes, cnidocytes contain stinging nematocysts, capsule-like organelles capable of everting suddenly, giving the phylum Cnidaria its name. Each nematocyst contains a small venom vesicle filled with actinotoxins, a filament. This gives the anemone its characteristic sticky feeling, the sea anemone eats small fish and shrimp. The venom is a mix of toxins, including neurotoxins, that paralyzes the prey so the anemone can move it to the mouth for digestion inside the gastrovascular cavity, actinotoxins are highly toxic to prey species of fish and crustaceans. However, Amphiprioninae, small banded fish in various colors, are not affected by their host anemones sting, several other species have similar adaptions and are also unaffected. Most sea anemones are harmless to humans, but a few highly toxic species have caused injuries and are potentially lethal. A gastrovascular cavity functions as a stomach and possesses an opening to the outside. Waste and undigested matter is excreted through this opening, which can be described as an incomplete gut, the mouth is typically slit-like in shape, and bears a groove at one or both ends. The groove, termed a siphonophore, is ciliated, and helps to circulate water through the gastrovascular cavity, some anemones feed on small particles, which are caught with the aid of a mucus secretion and moving currents that are set up by the tentacles. Most sea anemones are predacious, immobilizing their prey with the aid of their nematocysts, the mouth opens into a flattened pharynx. This consists of an in-folding of the wall, and is therefore lined by the animals epidermis
25.
Coleoidea
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Subclass Coleoidea, or Dibranchiata, is the grouping of cephalopods containing all the various taxa popularly thought of as soft-bodied or shell-less, i. e. octopus, squid and cuttlefish. Some species have lost their cuttlebone altogether, while in some it has replaced by a chitinous support structure. The major divisions of Coleoidea are based upon the number of arms or tentacles, the extinct and most primitive form, the Belemnoidea, presumably had ten equally sized arms, in five pairs numbered dorsal to ventral as I, II, III, IV and V. More modern species either modified or lost a pair of arms, the superorder Decapodiformes has arm pair IV modified into long tentacles with suckers generally only on the club-shaped distal end. The earliest certain coleoids are known from the Mississippian sub-period of the Carboniferous Period, some older fossils have been described from the Devonian, but paleontologists disagree about whether they are coleoids. Other cephalopods with internal shells, which could represent coleoids but may also denote the independent internalization of the shell, are known from the Silurian and it is possible that the Early–Middle Cambrian fossil Nectocaris represents a coleoid that lost its shell, possibly secondarily. By the Carboniferous, coleoids already had a diversity of forms, although most of these groups are traditionally classified as belemnoids, the variation among them suggests that some are not closely related to belemnites. A. Annals and Magazine of Natural History, cephBase, Coleoidea Tree of Life web project, Coleoidea
26.
Box jellyfish
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Box jellyfish are cnidarian invertebrates distinguished by their cube-shaped medusae. Some species of box jellyfish produce extremely potent venom, Chironex fleckeri, Carukia barnesi, stings from these and a few other species in the class are extremely painful and can be fatal to humans. Box jellyfish and sea wasp are common names for the highly venomous Chironex fleckeri, however, these terms are ambiguous, as sea wasp and marine stinger are sometimes used to refer to other jellyfish. The medusa form of a box jellyfish has a squarish, box-like bell, from each of the four lower corners of this hangs a short pedalium or stalk which bears one or more long, slender, hollow tentacles. The rim of the bell is folded inwards to form a shelf known as a velarium which restricts the bells aperture, as a result, box jellyfish can move more rapidly than other jellyfish, speeds of up to six meters per minute have been recorded. In the center of the underside of the bell is an appendage called the manubrium which somewhat resembles an elephants trunk. The interior of the bell is known as the gastrovascular cavity and it is divided by four equidistant septa into a central stomach and four gastric pockets. The eight gonads are located in pairs on either side of the four septa, the margins of the septa bear bundles of small gastric filaments which house nematocysts and digestive glands and help to subdue prey. Each septum is extended into a funnel that opens onto the oral surface and facilitates the flow of fluid into. The box jellyfishs nervous system is more developed than that of many other jellyfish and they possess a nerve ring around the base of the bell that coordinates their pulsing movements, a feature found elsewhere only in the crown jellyfish. Whereas some other jellyfish have simple pigment-cup ocelli, box jellyfish are unique in the possession of true eyes, complete with retinas, corneas and their eyes are set in clusters called rhopalia, located in pockets halfway up the outer, flat surfaces of the bell. Each contains two rhopalial ocelli with lenses, one directed upwards and the other downwards and inwards towards the manubrium and this enables the animal to see specific points of light, as opposed to simply distinguishing between light and dark. Box jellyfish also have twenty ocelli that do not form images, near the rhopalia are statoliths which detect gravitational pull and help the animal to orient itself. Box jellyfish also display complex, probably visually guided behaviors such as obstacle avoidance, research indicates that, owing to the number of rhopalial nerve cells and their overall arrangement, visual processing and integration at least partly happen within the rhopalia of box jellyfish. The complex nervous system supports a relatively advanced sensory system compared to other jellyfish, some species have tentacles that can reach up to 3 m in length. Box jellyfish can weigh up to 2 kg and it has been found that the statoliths, which are composed of calcium sulfate hemihydrate, exhibit clear sequential incremental layers, thought to be laid down on a daily basis. This has enabled researchers to estimate growth rates, ages, Chironex fleckeri, for example, increases its inter-pedalia distance by 3 mm per day, reaching an IPD of 50 mm when 45 to 50 days old. The maximum age of any individual examined was 88 days by which time it had grown to an IPD of 155 mm, the box jellyfish actively hunts its prey, rather than drifting as do true jellyfish
27.
Venomous fish
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Venomous fish produce a strong toxin harmful to humans which they deliver by means of a bite, sting, or stab. As a contrast, poisonous fish also produce a strong toxin, instead they are poisonous to eat because the human digestive system does not destroy the toxin they contain in their body. Venomous fish dont necessarily cause poisoning if they are eaten, since the system often destroys the venom. A2006 study found there are at least 1200 species of venomous fish. There are more fish than venomous snakes. In fact, there are more fish than the combined total of all other venomous vertebrates. Venomous fish are found in almost all habitats around the world and they wound over 50,000 people every year. They carry their venom in venom glands and use various systems, such as spines or sharp fins, barbs, spikes. Venomous fish tend to be very visible, using flamboyant colors to warn enemies, or skilfully camouflaged. Apart from the defense or hunting value, venom helps bottom dwelling fish by killing the bacteria that try to invade their skin, few of these venoms have been studied. They are yet to be tapped resource for bioprospecting to find drugs with medical uses, treatment for venom stings usually includes the application of heat, using water at temperatures of about 45 °C, since heat breaks down most complex venom proteins. The most venomous fish is the reef stonefish. It has an ability to camouflage itself amongst rocks. It is a predator that sits on the bottom waiting for prey to approach. Instead of swimming away if disturbed, it erects 13 venomous spines along its back, for defense it can shoot venom from each or all of these spines. Each spine is like a needle, delivering the venom from two sacs attached to the spine. The stonefish has control over whether to shoot its venom, the venom results in severe pain, paralysis and tissue death, and can be fatal if not treated. Despite its formidable defenses, stonefish have predators, some bottom feeding rays and sharks with crushing teeth feed on them, as does the Stokes seasnake The lionfish is a venomous coral reef fish
28.
Fish
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A fish is any member of a group of animals that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic craniate animals that lack limbs with digits. They form a group to the tunicates, together forming the olfactores. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous, tetrapods emerged within lobe-finned fishes, so cladistically they are fish as well. However, traditionally fish are rendered obsolete or paraphyletic by excluding the tetrapods, because in this manner the term fish is defined negatively as a paraphyletic group, it is not considered a formal taxonomic grouping in systematic biology. The traditional term pisces is considered a typological, but not a phylogenetic classification, the earliest organisms that can be classified as fish were soft-bodied chordates that first appeared during the Cambrian period. Although they lacked a true spine, they possessed notochords which allowed them to be more agile than their invertebrate counterparts, fish would continue to evolve through the Paleozoic era, diversifying into a wide variety of forms. Many fish of the Paleozoic developed external armor that protected them from predators, the first fish with jaws appeared in the Silurian period, after which many became formidable marine predators rather than just the prey of arthropods. Fish are abundant in most bodies of water and they can be found in nearly all aquatic environments, from high mountain streams to the abyssal and even hadal depths of the deepest oceans. With 33,100 described species, fish exhibit greater species diversity than any group of vertebrates. Fish are an important resource for humans worldwide, especially as food, commercial and subsistence fishers hunt fish in wild fisheries or farm them in ponds or in cages in the ocean. They are also caught by fishers, kept as pets, raised by fishkeepers. Fish have had a role in culture through the ages, serving as deities, religious symbols, fish do not represent a monophyletic group, and therefore the evolution of fish is not studied as a single event. Early fish from the record are represented by a group of small, jawless. Jawless fish lineages are mostly extinct, an extant clade, the lampreys may approximate ancient pre-jawed fish. The first jaws are found in Placodermi fossils, the diversity of jawed vertebrates may indicate the evolutionary advantage of a jawed mouth. It is unclear if the advantage of a hinged jaw is greater biting force, improved respiration, fish may have evolved from a creature similar to a coral-like sea squirt, whose larvae resemble primitive fish in important ways. The first ancestors of fish may have kept the form into adulthood. Fish are a group, that is, any clade containing all fish also contains the tetrapods
29.
Stingray
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Stingrays are a group of rays, which are cartilaginous fish related to sharks. Most stingrays have one or more barbed stingers on the tail, the stinger may reach a length around 35 cm, and its underside has two grooves with venom glands. The stinger is covered with a layer of skin, the integumentary sheath. A few members of the suborder, such as the manta and porcupine rays, stingrays are common in coastal tropical and subtropical marine waters throughout the world. Some species, such as Dasyatis thetidis, are found in temperate oceans. The river stingrays, and a number of stingrays, are restricted to fresh water. Most myliobatoids are demersal, but some, such as the pelagic stingray, there are about 220 known stingray species organised into 10 families and 29 genera. Stingray species are becoming threatened or vulnerable to extinction, particularly as the consequence of unregulated fishing. As of 2013,45 species have been listed as vulnerable or endangered by the IUCN, the status of some other species is poorly known, leading to their being listed as data deficient. The flattened bodies of stingrays allow them to conceal themselves in their environments. Stingrays do this by agitating the sand and hiding beneath it, because their eyes are on top of their bodies and their mouths on the undersides, stingrays cannot see their prey, instead, they use smell and electroreceptors similar to those of sharks. Stingrays feed primarily on molluscs, crustaceans, and occasionally on small fish, some stingrays mouths contain two powerful, shell-crushing plates, while other species only have sucking mouthparts. Stingrays settle on the bottom feeding, often leaving only their eyes. Coral reefs are favorite feeding grounds and are shared with sharks during high tide. He then places one of his two claspers into her valve, stingrays are ovoviviparous, bearing live young in litters of five to 13. The female holds the embryos in the womb without a placenta, instead, the embryos absorb nutrients from a yolk sac, and after the sac is depleted, the mother provides uterine milk. At the Sea Life London Aquarium, two female stingrays have delivered seven baby stingrays, although the mothers have not been near a male for two years, rays have been known to store sperm and not give birth until they decide the timing is right. A common predatory technique that has been observed among benthic elasmobranchs is ambushing behavior, there have been recorded occasions where this form of ambushing behavior of stingrays and related benthic sharks has been directed towards a common prey type
30.
Shark
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Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachimorpha and are the group to the rays. Under this broader definition, the earliest known sharks date back to more than 420 million years ago, acanthodians are often referred to as spiny sharks, though they are not part of Chondrichthyes proper, they are a paraphyletic assemblage leading to cartilaginous fish as a whole. Since then, sharks have diversified into over 500 species, Sharks are found in all seas and are common to depths of 2,000 metres. They generally do not live in freshwater although there are a few exceptions, such as the bull shark and the river shark. Sharks have a covering of dermal denticles that protects their skin from damage and they have numerous sets of replaceable teeth. Well-known species such as the white shark, tiger shark, blue shark, mako shark. Many shark populations are threatened by human activities, until the 16th century, sharks were known to mariners as sea dogs. The etymology of the shark is uncertain. One theory is that it derives from the Yucatec Maya word xok, however, the Middle English Dictionary records an isolated occurrence of the word shark in a letter written by Thomas Beckington in 1442, which rules out a New World etymology. Evidence for the existence of sharks dates from the Ordovician period, 450–420 million years ago, before land vertebrates existed and before many plants had colonized the continents. Only scales have been recovered from the first sharks and not all agree that these are from true sharks. The oldest generally accepted shark scales are from about 420 million years ago, the first sharks looked very different from modern sharks. The majority of sharks can be traced back to around 100 million years ago. Most fossils are of teeth, often in large numbers, partial skeletons and even complete fossilized remains have been discovered. Estimates suggest that sharks grow tens of thousands of teeth over a lifetime, the teeth consist of easily fossilized calcium phosphate, an apatite. When a shark dies, the decomposing skeleton breaks up, scattering the apatite prisms, preservation requires rapid burial in bottom sediments. Among the most ancient and primitive sharks is Cladoselache, from about 370 million years ago, which has been found within Paleozoic strata in Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee
31.
Chimaera
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Chimaeras are cartilaginous fishes in the order Chimaeriformes, known informally as ghost sharks, rat fish, spookfish, or rabbit fish. Today, they are confined to deep water. Chimaeras live in temperate ocean floors down to 2,600 m deep, exceptions include the members of the genus Callorhinchus, the rabbit fish and the spotted ratfish, which locally or periodically can be found at relatively shallow depths. Consequently, these are also among the few species from the Chimaera order kept in public aquaria and they have elongated, soft bodies, with a bulky head and a single gill-opening. They grow up to 150 cm in length, although includes the lengthy tail found in some species. In many species, the snout is modified into a sensory organ. Like other members of the class Chondrichthyes, chimaera skeletons are constructed of cartilage and their skin is smooth and largely covered by placoid scales, and their color can range from black to brownish gray. For defense, most chimaeras have a venomous spine located in front of the dorsal fin, Chimaeras resemble sharks in some ways, they employ claspers for internal fertilization of females and they lay eggs with leathery cases. They also use electroreception to locate their prey, however, unlike sharks, male chimaeras also have retractable sexual appendages on the forehead and in front of the pelvic fins. The females lay eggs in spindle-shaped, leathery egg cases and they also differ from sharks in that their upper jaws are fused with their skulls and they have separate anal and urogenital openings. They lack sharks many sharp and replaceable teeth, having instead just three pairs of large permanent grinding tooth plates and they also have gill covers or opercula like bony fishes. In some classifications, the chimaeras are included in the class Chondrichthyes of cartilaginous fishes, in other systems, Chimaeras also have some characteristics of bony fishes. The order appears to have originated about 420 million years ago during the Silurian, the 39 extant species fall into three families – the Callorhinchids, Rhinochimaerids and Chimaerids with the callorhinchids being the most basal clade. The families appear to have diverged during the late Jurassic to early Cretaceous List of prehistoric cartilaginous fish List of Chimaeras
32.
Teleost
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The teleosts or Teleostei are by far the largest infraclass in the class Actinopterygii, the ray-finned fishes, and make up 96 percent of all fish. This diverse group arose in the Triassic period and members are arranged in about 40 orders and 448 families, over 26,000 species have been described. Teleosts range from giant oarfish, measuring 25 ft or more, as well as torpedo-shaped fish built for speed, teleosts can be flattened vertically or horizontally, be elongated cylinders or take specialised shapes as in anglerfish and seahorses. Teleosts dominate the seas from pole to pole and inhabit the depths, estuaries, rivers, lakes. This is of advantage, enabling them to grab prey. Other bones further back in the serve to grind and swallow food. Another difference is that the upper and lower lobes of the fin are about equal in size. The spine ends at the peduncle, distinguishing this group from other fish in which the spine extends into the upper lobe of the tail fin. Teleosts have adopted a range of reproductive strategies, most use external fertilisation, the female lays a batch of eggs, the male fertilises them and the larvae develop without any further parental involvement. A fair proportion of teleosts are hermaphrodites, starting life as females and transitioning to males at some stage, a small percentage of teleosts are viviparous and some provide parental care with typically the male fish guarding a nest and fanning the eggs to keep them well-oxygenated. Teleosts are economically important to humans as is shown by their depiction in art over the centuries, the fishing industry harvests them for food and anglers attempt to capture them for sport. Some species are farmed commercially, and this method of production is likely to be important in the future. Others are kept in aquaria or used in research, especially in the fields of genetics, the defining features of the teleosts are mobile premaxilla, elongated neural arches at the end of the caudal fin and unpaired basibranchial toothplates. The premaxilla is unattached to the neurocranium, it plays a role in protruding the mouth and this lowers the pressure inside the mouth, sucking the prey inside. The lower jaw and maxilla are then pulled back to close the mouth, by contrast, mere closure of the jaws would risk pushing food out of the mouth. In more derived teleosts, the premaxilla is enlarged and has teeth, the maxilla functions to push both the premaxilla and the lower jaw forward. To open the mouth, an adductor muscle pulls back the top of the maxilla, in addition, the maxilla rotates slightly, which pushes forward a bony process that interlocks with the premaxilla. The pharyngeal jaws of teleosts, a set of jaws contained within the throat, are composed of five branchial arches
33.
Monognathus
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Monognathus, or onejaw, is the only genus of the family Monognathidae of deep-sea, eel-like fishes. The name comes from the Greek monos meaning one and gnathos meaning jaw, a reference to the mouth in comparison with the rest of the fish. The dorsal and anal fins lack bony supports, the fins are missing. The snout has a fang which is connected to glands, typical lengths are from 4 to 10 cm, the maximum length recorded is 15.9 cm. They are generally black in color, and are found at depths of over 2,000 m, the fifteen known species are, Monognathus ahlstromi Raju,1974 Monognathus berteli J. G. Nielsen & Hartel,1996. Monognathus bertini Bertelsen & J. G. Nielsen,1987, Monognathus boehlkei Bertelsen & J. G. Nielsen,1987. Monognathus herringi Bertelsen & J. G. Nielsen,1987, Monognathus nigeli Bertelsen & J. G. Nielsen,1987. Monognathus ozawai Bertelsen & J. G. Nielsen,1987, Monognathus rajui Bertelsen & J. G. Nielsen,1987. Monognathus rosenblatti Bertelsen & J. G. Nielsen,1987, Monognathus smithi Bertelsen & J. G. Nielsen,1987
34.
Catfish
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Catfish are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. There are armour-plated types and there are also naked types, neither having scales, despite their name, not all catfish have prominent barbel. Members of the Siluriformes order are defined by features of the skull, Catfish are of considerable commercial importance, many of the larger species are farmed or fished for food. Many of the species, particularly the genus Corydoras, are important in the aquarium hobby. Many catfish are nocturnal, but others are crepuscular or diurnal, extant catfish species live inland or in coastal waters of every continent except Antarctica. Catfish have inhabited all continents at one time or another, Catfish are most diverse in tropical South America, Asia and Africa with one family native to North America and one family in Europe. More than half of all species live in the Americas. They are the only ostariophysans that have entered freshwater habitats in Madagascar, Australia and they are found in freshwater environments, though most inhabit shallow, running water. Representatives of at least eight families are hypogean with three families that are also troglobitic, one such species is Phreatobius cisternarum, known to live underground in phreatic habitats. Numerous species from the families Ariidae and Plotosidae, and a few species from among the Aspredinidae and Bagridae, are found in salt water. In the United States, catfish species may be known by a variety of names, such as mud cat, polliwogs. These nicknames are not standardized, so one area may call a bullhead catfish by the nickname chucklehead, while in state or region. Representatives of the genus Ictalurus have been introduced into European waters in the hope of obtaining a sporting, however, the European stock of American catfishes has not achieved the dimensions of these fish in their native waters, and have only increased the ecological pressure on native European fauna. Walking catfish have also introduced in the freshwaters of Florida. Flathead catfish, Pylodictis olivaris, is also a North American pest on Atlantic slope drainages, pterygoplichthys species, released by aquarium fishkeepers, have also established feral populations in many warm waters around the world. In general, they are buoyant, which means that they will usually sink rather than float due to a reduced gas bladder. Catfish have a variety of shapes, though most have a cylindrical body with a flattened ventrum to allow for benthic feeding. A flattened head allows for digging through the substrate as well as serving as a hydrofoil
35.
Synanceia
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Synanceia is a genus of fish of the family Synanceiidae, the stonefishes, whose members are venomous, dangerous, and even fatal to humans. It is one of the most venomous fish known and they are found in the coastal regions of the Indo-Pacific. Synanceia are primarily marine, though species are known to live in rivers. Its species have potent neurotoxins secreted from glands at the base of their dorsal fin spines which stick up when disturbed or threatened. The vernacular name of the species, the stonefish, derives from the ability to camouflage itself with a grey. Swimmers may not notice them, and may inadvertently step on them, when the stonefish is disturbed, it may inject an amount of venom proportional to the amount of pressure applied to it. The type species of the genus is Synanceia verrucosa, which includes the species Synanceia horrida that Linnaeus described as Scorpaena, the authors of Synanceia are Marcus Elieser Bloch and Johann Gottlob Schneider in the latters republication of Systema Ichthyologiae iconibus cx illustratum, in 1801. The description was accompanied by an illustration by J. F. Hennig, the misspelling Synanceja is regarded as a synonym for this genus. G. Schneider,1801 Stonefish stings are both potentially lethal and extremely painful, the two most recommended treatments include the application of heat to the affected area and antivenom. People have used hot water applied to the area which has been found to destroy stonefish venom. For more extreme cases, antivenom has been used, vinegar can be found on some Australian beaches where there are frequent cases of people stepping on these fish, as the vinegar is said to lessen the pain. Stonefish stings in Australia can cause envenomation and death if not treated, the stonefish is one of the most venomous fish in the world and when stepped on by a human forces venom into the foot. Most stonefish stings occur as a result of stepping on the creature while it is common for the fish to sting when it is picked up. Stonefish stings can occur on the beach, not just in the water and they often cannot be easily seen as they look similar to rocks or coral. Stonefish antivenom is the second-most administered in Australia, Aborigines know of the venom of the stonefish and have corroborees which involve re-enacting death from someone who trod on the fish. The Aborigines of Northern Australia and the Great Barrier Reef have different ways of preparing the fish for eating to avoid poisoning, after stonefish envenomation, the amount of anti-venom given depends on the number of puncture wounds from the stonefish spines. There were 14 calls to the Queensland Poisons Information System in 2008 regarding stonefish poison, the fish are considered a delicacy in many parts of Asia, including south Japan, south Fujian and Guangdong in China, and Hong Kong. In the Hokkien-speaking area, they are considered delicacies and good for health, the meat of Synanceia is white, dense and sweet, and the skin is also edible
36.
Tetrarogidae
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The waspfishes are a family, the Tetrarogidae, of scorpaeniform fishes native to the Indian Ocean and the West Pacific. They are closely related to the scorpionfishes, as their name suggests, waspfishes are often venomous, having poison glands on their spines. They are bottom-dwelling fish, living at depths to 300 metres and they are small fish, from 2. 5-23 cm long with spiny fins. These creatures usually live in hiding places on the sea bottom
37.
Scorpaenidae
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Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfish, are a family of mostly marine fish that includes many of the worlds most venomous species. As the name suggests, scorpionfish have a type of sting in the form of sharp spines coated with venomous mucus, the family is a large one, with hundreds of members. They are widespread in tropical and temperate seas, but mostly found in the Indo-Pacific and they should not be confused with the cabezones, of the genus Scorpaenichthys, which belong to a separate, though related, family, Cottidae. Some types, such as the lionfish, are attractive as well as dangerous, in addition to the name scorpionfish, informal names for family members include firefish, turkeyfish, dragonfish, and stingfish, usually with adjectives added. General characteristics of family members include a body, ridges and/or spines on the head. The dorsal fin has 11 to 17 spines, often long and separated from other. The spines of the dorsal, anal, and pelvic fins all have venom glands at their bases, most species are bottom-dwellers that feed on crustaceans and smaller fish. Many inhabit shallow waters, but a few live as deep as 2,200 m, most scorpionfish, such as the stonefish, wait in disguise for prey to pass them by before swallowing, while lionfish often ambush their prey. When not ambushing, lionfish may herd the fish, shrimp, like many perciform fishes, scorpionfish are suction feeders that capture prey by rapidly projecting a suction field generated by expansion of the fishs buccal cavity. Scorpaenid systematics are complicated and unsettled, scorpaenidae entry on the Animal Diversity Web. Scorpionfish Rescue - Koh Phangan, Thailand
38.
Pterois
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Pterois is a genus of venomous marine fish, commonly known as lionfish, native to the Indo-Pacific. Pterois radiata, Pterois volitans, and Pterois miles are the most commonly studied species in the genus, Pterois species are popular aquarium fish. P. volitans and P. miles are a recent and significant invasive species in the west Atlantic, Caribbean Sea and they are well known for their ornate beauty, venomous spines, and unique tentacles. Juvenile lionfish have a unique tentacle located above their eye sockets that varies in phenotype between species, the evolution of this tentacle is suggested to serve to continually attract new prey, studies also suggest it plays a role in sexual selection. Pterois species can live from five to 15 years and have complex courtship, females release two mucus-filled egg clusters frequently, which can contain as many as 15,000 eggs. Studies on Pterois reproductive habits have increased significantly in the past decade, all the species are aposematic, they have conspicuous coloration with boldly contrasting stripes and wide fans of projecting spines, advertising their ability to defend themselves. The amount of prey in lionfish stomachs over the course of the day suggests lionfish feed most actively from 7, 00–11,00 am, the lionfish then spreads its large pectoral fins and swallows its prey in a single motion. They blow jets of water while approaching prey, apparently to disorient them, in addition to confusing prey, these jets of water also alter the orientation of the prey so that the smaller fish is facing the lionfish. This results in a degree to predatory efficiency as head-first capture is easier for the lionfish. Moray eels, bluespotted cornetfish, and large groupers, like the tiger grouper and it remains unknown, however, how commonly these predators prey on lionfish. Sharks are also believed to be capable of preying on lionfish with no ill effects from their spines, Park officials of the Roatan Marine Park in Honduras have attempted to train sharks to feed on lionfish as of 2011 in an attempt to control the invasive populations in the Caribbean. Predators of larvae and juvenile lionfish remain unknown, but may prove to be the limiting factor of lionfish populations in their native range. Parasites of lionfish have rarely been observed and are assumed to be infrequent, Lionfish are known for their venomous fin rays, an uncommon feature among marine fish in the East Coast coral reefs. The potency of their venom makes them excellent predators and venomous to fishermen, Pterois venom produced negative inotropic and chronotropic effects when tested in both frog and clam hearts and has a depressing effect on rabbit blood pressure. These results are thought to be due to nitric oxide release, rarely, such stings can cause temporary paralysis of the limbs, heart failure, and even death. Fatalities are common in young children, the elderly, those with a weak immune system. Their venom is rarely fatal to healthy adults, but some species have enough venom to produce extreme discomfort for a period of several days. However, Pterois venom is a danger to allergic victims as they may experience anaphylaxis, severe allergic reactions to Pterois venom include chest pain, severe breathing difficulties, a drop in blood pressure, swelling of the tongue, sweating, runny nose, or slurred speech
39.
Rabbitfish
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Rabbitfishes or spinefoots are perciform fishes in the family Siganidae. The 28 species are in a genus, Siganus. In some now obsolete classifications, the species having prominent face stripes—colloquially called foxfaces–are in the genus Lo, Other species, such as the masked spinefoot, show a reduced form of the stripe pattern. Rabbitfishes are native to waters in the Indo-Pacific, but S. luridus. It can be used in the preparation of bagoong, all rabbitfish have large, dark eyes and small, somewhat rabbit-like mouths, which gives them their name. Most species have bright colors or a complex pattern. The largest rabbitfish grows to about 53 cm, but most species reach between 25 and 35 cm. Another unusual feature among rabbitfishes is their pelvic fins, which are formed from two spines, with three soft rays between them. The dorsal fin bears 13 spines with 10 rays behind, while the fin has seven spines and nine rays behind. All rabbitfish are diurnal, some live in schools, while others live more solitary lives among the corals and they are herbivorous, feeding on benthic algae in the wild. However, Siganus rivulatus was recently observed feeding on jellyfish and comb jellies in the Red Sea, also Siganus fuscescens have been observed eating prawns and other baits, suggesting that some species are opportunistic omnivorous feeders. Many are fished for food, and the more colorful species—especially the foxfish—are often kept in aquaria, in aquaria, they eat a variety of fresh vegetables and algae. Care must be taken during maintenance and cleaning, as rabbitfishes are often easily frightened. Their venom is not life-threatening to adult humans, but causes severe pain, fuscescens) complex The remainder of Siganus, including the foxfaces Other lineages might exist and make obsolete the somewhat weak distinction between the second and third groups. Also, it is not known where the type species S. rivulatus would fall, hybridizaton has played a role in the evolution of the Siganidae, as evidenced by comparison of mtDNA cytochrome b and nDNA internal transcribed spacer 1 sequence data. Evidence exists of interbreeding between S. guttatus and S. lineatus, as well as between S. doliatus and S. virgatus, an individual was found that looked like a slightly aberrant blue-spotted spinefoot. On investigation, it turned out to be an offspring of a hybrid between a female of that species and a male masked spinefoot, which had successfully backcrossed with the blue-spotted spinefoot. As noted above, several presumed species are suspected to actively interbreed even today and this applies to the white-spotted spinefoot and the mottled spinefoot, and to the blotched foxface and the foxface rabbitfish
40.
Dragonet
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Dragonets are small, perciform, marine fish of the diverse family Callionymidae found mainly in the tropical waters of the western Indo-Pacific. They are benthic organisms, spending most of their time near the sandy bottoms, there exist 139 species of the fish, in nineteen genera. Due to similarities in morphology and behavior, dragonets are sometimes confused with members of the goby family, however, male dragonets can be differentiated from the goby by their very long dorsal fins, and females by their protruding lower jaws. The Draconettidae may be considered a family, whose members are very much alike. These little dragons are very colorful and possess cryptic patterns. Their bodies are elongated and scaleless, a large preopercular spine is characteristic of this fish, and has been reported to be venomous in some species. All fins are large, showy and elongated, the first high dorsal fin usually has four spines, in males, dragonets have flattened, triangular heads with large mouths and eyes, their tail fins are fan-shaped and tapered. The largest species, the longtail dragonet reaches a length of 30 centimetres, at the other end of the spectrum, the Saint Helena dragonet reaches a length of just 2 centimetres. Many species exhibit marked sexual dimorphism, males and females are coloured and patterned differently from each other and this difference is extreme in the high-finned dragonet. Dragonet spawning occurs during late afternoons, right before the sun sets, the fish’s spawning behavior is divided into four distinctive stages, courtship display, pairing, ascending, and the release of eggs and milt. Both male and female dragonets have been observed displaying and courting each other, females only do so when they are ready to spawn and are in need of a mate. Both sexes display by spreading their pectoral and caudal fins, males will sometimes also spread their dorsal fins, repeatedly open and close their mouths, and position themselves on top of the females and rub their abdomens with their bodies. If a female accepts a male for spawning, they form a pair, occasionally, another male might intrude upon the pair as they are mating and attempt to sneak fertilizations with the female. Such an act would result in aggression by the original male, prior to spawning, a male and female dragonet pair will ascend approximately 0. 7-1.2 meters up a water column from the sand at the bottom of the ocean. The male assumes a position to the female, touching the female’s side with the part of its body near its ventral fin. The pair rises slowly up the column, moving in a semicircular manner by swimming with their pectoral fins. The ascent occurs in two phases, during the first phase, the dragonet pair moves upward about fifteen centimeters and rests for around five seconds. Then it proceeds with its second rise, during this second phase of the ascent, the male and female flex their bodies and move their genital papillae toward each other
41.
Acanthuridae
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Acanthuridae is the family of surgeonfishes, tangs, and unicornfishes. The family includes about 86 extant species, the family is composed of marine fish living in tropical seas, usually around coral reefs. Many of the species are colored and popular for aquaria. The distinctive characteristic of the family is the spines, one or more on either side of the tail. The dorsal, anal, and caudal fins are large, extending for most of the length of the body, the small mouths have a single row of teeth used for grazing on algae. Surgeonfishes sometimes feed as solitary individuals, but they often travel. Feeding in schools may be a mechanism for overwhelming the highly aggressive defense responses of small territorial damselfishes that vigorously guard small patches of algae on coral reefs and this refers to the distinguishing characteristic of the family, the scalpel found on each members caudal peduncle. In the early 1900s, the family was called Hepatidae, tangs are very sensitive to disease in the home aquarium. However, if the tang is fed enough algae and the aquarium is properly maintained disease should not be a problem and it is usually necessary to quarantine the animals for a period before introducing them to the aquarium. Adults range from 15 to 40 centimetres in length and most grow quickly even in aquaria, when considering a tang for an aquarium it is important to consider the size to which these fish can grow. Many also suggest adding aggressive tangs to the aquarium last as they are territorial and may fight, tangs primarily graze on macroalgae from genera such as Caulerpa and Gracilaria, although they have been observed in an aquarium setting to eat meat-based fish foods. A popular technique for aquarists, is to grow macroalgae in a sump or refugium and this technique not only is economically beneficial, but serves to promote enhanced water quality through nitrate absorption. The growth of the algae can then be controlled by feeding it to the tang, university of Michigan Museum of Zoology. A compendium of fossil marine animal genera
42.
Scatophagidae
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Not to be confused with Scathophagidae, a fly family. The scats are a family, Scatophagidae, of fishes in the order Perciformes. They are small fish native to the Indian and western Pacific Oceans that have been popular in the trade in the last 30 years. Although juvenile scats may live in an environment, most adult scats prefer a brackish water environment. However, the African scat, Scatophagus tetracanthus, can and does live in water in the wild. The largest species reaches 38 cm in length and some have been known to more than 20 years in captivity given the proper water conditions. They are scavengers, feeding on algae and feces, hence their name, from Greek skatos meaning feces and phagein meaning eat. The four species in two genera are, Genus Scatophagus Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes,1831 Scatophagus argus – common scat, green scat, Genus Selenotoca Myers,1936 Selenotoca multifasciata – silver scat. Selenotoca papuensis – moon scat Fraser-Brunner,1938, froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds
. PMID 25530442.
