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The bowfins are an order (Amiiformes) of primitive ray-finned fish. Only one species, the bowfin Amia calva, family Amiidae, exists today, although additional species in six families are known from Jurassic, Cretaceous, and Eocene fossils. These included the huge Leedsicthys, the biggest fish that ever existed. The bowfin and the gar are two of the freshwater fishes still extant that existed, almost unchanged from their current form, while the great dinosaurs roamed the earth. Image File history File links Description: en: Bowfin Amia calva; de: Kahlhecht Artwork: Duane Raver URL: Fish and Wildlife Servive File links The following pages link to this file: Bowfin ...
Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. ...
Digimon, the only known animals. ...
Typical Classes See below Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates. ...
Orders See text The Actinopterygii are the ray-finned fish. ...
Charles Lucien Jules Laurent Bonaparte (May 24, 1803 _ July 29, 1857) was a French naturalist and ornithologist. ...
In biology, binomial nomenclature is the formal method of naming species. ...
Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as , (May 23, 1707[1] – January 10, 1778), was a Swedish botanist, physician and zoologist[2] who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of nomenclature. ...
Orders See text The Actinopterygii are the ray-finned fish. ...
The Jurassic Period is a major unit of the geologic timescale that extends from about 199. ...
The Cretaceous Period is one of the major divisions of the geologic timescale, reaching from the end of the Jurassic Period (i. ...
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Three small ammonite fossils, each approximately 1. ...
Binomial name Leedsichthys problematicus Leedsichthys problematicus was a giant pachycormid (an extinct group of bony fish) that lived in the oceans of the late Jurassic period, 165-155 million years ago. ...
Species Atractosteus spatula Atractosteus tristoechus Atractosteus tropicus Lepisosteus oculatus Lepisosteus osseus Lepisosteus platostomus Lepisosteus platyrhincus In American English the name gar (or garpike) is strictly applied to members of the Lepisosteidae, a family including seven living species of fish in two genera that inhabit fresh, brackish, and occasionally marine, waters...
The most distinctive characteristic of the bowfin is its very long dorsal fin consisting of 45 to 50 rays, and running from mid-back to the base of the tail. The caudal fin is a single lobe, though heterocercal[1]. They can grow up to 1 meter in length, and weigh 7 kg. Not a very good food fish compared to many other freshwater species, they are often considered "trash" fish by sportsmen who catch them, and are scorned for their voracious appetite in eating both gamefish and panfish of more desirable species. However, they battle powerfully when hooked, offering a tremendous fight to the angler. Bowfin, when caught, should be handled carefully. They are very pugnacious, and consider themselves a match for anything - including a human being. Once in the boat, they will make every attempt they can at biting the fisherman - and they have a mouthful of very sharp teeth. Dorsal Fin of the Orca A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of fishes, whales, dolphins and porpoises. ...
Fish anatomy is primarily governed by the physical characteristics of water, which is much denser than air, holds a relatively small amount of dissolved oxygen, and absorbs light more than does air. ...
Bowfins are found throughout eastern North America, typically in slow-moving backwaters. When the oxygen level is low (as often happens in still waters), the bowfin can rise to the surface and gulp air into its swim bladder, which is lined with blood vessels and can serve as a sort of lung. World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ...
The gas bladder (also fish maw, less accurately swim bladder or air bladder) is an internal organ that contributes to the ability of a fish to control its buoyancy, and thus to stay at the current water depth, ascend, or descend without having to waste energy in swimming. ...
Respiratory system The lungs flank the heart and great vessels in the chest cavity. ...
The list of local and alternate names the bowfin is known by is lengthy, but common ones include "dogfish", "mudfish", "grindle" and "lawyer".
They are nocturnal feeders, eating a variety of invertebrates (insects, crayfish) and vertebrates (frogs, fishes of all types).
Males are said to turn "bluish" when breeding [1]. The male bowfin exhibits extensive parental care. He clears an area in the mud for the female to lay eggs in, and then he fertilizes them. He hovers nearby and aggressively protects the eggs and the fry after they emerge.[2]
References
- ^ Nelson, Joseph S. (2006). Fishes of the World. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 0471250317
- ^ Berra, Tim M. (2001). Freshwater Fish Distribution. San Diego: Academic Press. ISBN 0-12-093156-7
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