STAL 1022: ICHTHYOLOGY

TITLE :

OSTEICHTHYES ANATOMY AND FUNCTION

INSTRUCTOR :

DR. MEI LING

PREPARED BY :

WARDINA INANI BINTI KHAIRUDIN

A195485

DATE :

09 JULY 2023
1.0 INTRODUCTION

The study on morphometric and meristic characters in fishes is important because they
can be used for the differentiation of taxonomic units and are able to spot differences between
fish population. A meristic is a measurable characteristic, such as the quantity of dorsal fin
spines or rakers on the gills. A measurable feature, such as caudal peduncle length or wet
weight, which may be measured as a length, mass, angle, or ratio of other measurements, is used
in morphometrics to analyze the size and shape. Morphometrics adds a quantitative element to
descriptions, allowing more rigorous comparisons. It enables one to describe complex shapes in
a rigorous fashion and permits numerical comparison between different forms. Advancements in
morphometrics use powerful tools for testing and displaying differences in shape, isolating shape
from size variation and identifying stocks of species with unique morphological characteristics.
Taxa are frequently categorized using morphometrics and meristic features, sometimes down to
the species or subspecies level. These measures and counts can be used in dichotomous keys to
identify specific fish species. Meristics and morphometrics served as the main foundation for
fish taxonomy and systematics prior to the development of contemporary genetic tools.

Just like on the human body, fishes have external body parts. The body parts help them
move, breathe, locate things, avoid enemies, know more about the environment around them, and
many more things. These body parts might look very different from one kind of fish to another,
but we can use the size, shape, and location of these body parts to identify any fish. Knowing the
names, general locations, and their functions is the first step in identifying fishes. For example,
different fishes have different shape of mouth depending on where their habitat is and their diet.
Fish also have different shapes of caudal fins such as rounded, truncate, emarginate, pointed and
many more. By identifying these external features, fish can be identified including its habitat and
diet. Other than that, internal features also play an important role to help in identifying a type of
fish. The shape of a fish is a result of its skeleton, which includes both bony and cartilaginous
parts. This shape reveals how a fish moves, swims, feeds, and breathes. The skull, vertebral
column, and appendicular bones make up the fish's osteology. According on size, age, fish
species, and roles, these skeletons' forms and locations vary. Fish can be identified and
categorised at several levels, including species, families, and higher classifications, using these
variances represented in the bones.
2.0 METHODOLOGY

2.1 Exercise A
1. The fish is observed and the number of rays and spines on each of its dorsal fin, pectoral
fin, pelvic fin, anal fin and scales along the lateral line are counted.
2. The observed numbers from the calculated number of spines and rays are recorded.
3. By using a fish measuring board, the following details are measured carefully :
a. Total length
b. Standard length
c. Jaw length
d. Post-orbital length
e. Caudal peduncle length
f. Fork length
g. Head length
h. Snout length
i. Interorbital length
j. Prepectoral length
4. The observed numbers from the fish measuring board are recorded.

2.2 Exercise B
1. By examining the fish the following parts for each of the fish groups are identified :
a. Caudal fin shape
b. Pectoral fin shape / position
c. Mouth position
d. Body form / shape
e. Type of gill opening
f. Type of scale
g. Habitat prediction
2. The observed characteristics of the fish are recorded.
2.3 Exercise C
2.3.1 Examining the patterns and the structure of fish musculature and skeleton
1. Lateral view of trunk musculature
a. An incision is made along the posterior of the pectoral fin, anterior of the caudal
fin, and the base of the anal, dorsal and pelvic fins (Diagram 1). The incision is
made deep enough to cut through only the skin.
b. The skin is removed from the body wall along the cut lines until the muscles on
the body are completely exposed.
c. The patterns of the muscles on the body of the fish are observed.
d. The lateral views of the fish are drawn and the epaxialis and hypaxialis are
labeled.
2. Dorsal / horizontal view of trunk musculature.
a. An incision is made along the dorsal part of the fish from the posterior of the head
to the caudal peduncle (Diagram 2). The incision is made deep enough to cut
through only the skin.
b. The skin along the cut line are removed and the patterns of the muscles from the
top view are observed.
c. The patterns of the muscles from the dorsal view of the fish are drawn.
3. Vertical view of the trunk musculature
a. A cross-sectional cut are made through the body of the fish that passes the thorax
or the anterior abdominal (Diagram 3)
b. The cross-sectional view of following parts are observed, drawn, and labelled :
i. Vertical septum
ii. Horizontal septum
iii. Vertebrae
iv. Body/ abdominal cavity
v. Lateralis superficialis
4. Lateral view of skeleton
a. An incision just off centre along the entire dorsal midline are made (Diagram 4).
b. By using blunt probe / fingers, the skin and the muscle are separated from the
bone to remove the muscles of the body wall to expose the bone associated with
dorsal fins, backbone, caudal fin, anal fin and bones of pelvic and pectoral fins.
c. The organs in the abdominal cavity are removed.
d. The following parts are observed, and drawn.
i. Appendicular skeleton of anal fin
ii. Appendicular skeleton of dorsal fin
iii. Appendicular skeleton of caudal fin
iv. Vertebra skeleton
v. Neural spine
vi. Fin rays
vii. Ribs
3.0 RESULTS

3.1 Exercise A
1. Dorsal fin - D : XII , 33
2. Pectoral fin - P : 12
3. Pelvic fin - P : 1
4. Anal fin - A : 41
5. Scales along the lateral line - Unidentified due to its scale covered by membrane
6. Total length - 16.5 cm
7. Standard length - 12.2 cm
8. Jaw length - 0.4 cm
9. Post-orbital length - 1.5 cm
10. Caudal peduncle length - 0.9 cm
11. Fork length - 13.5 cm
12. Head length - 3.8 cm
13. Snout length - 1.3 cm
14. Interorbital length - 1.0 cm
15. Prepectoral length - 3.5 cm

3.2 Exercise B
1. Caudal fin shape - forked
2. Pectoral fin shape / position - paddle-shaped
3. Mouth position - retracted
4. Body form / shape - taeniform
5. Type of gill opening - operculum
6. Type of scale - scale not found
7. Habitat prediction - near the bottom, benthopelagic

3.3 Exercise C
1. Lateral view of trunk musculature
2. The patterns of the muscles from the dorsal view of the fish
3. The cross-sectional view of the fish

4. Lateral view of fish skeletons

Based on the result from Exercise A, we can see that the fish have a relatively high
number of rays. Meanwhile for its spine, the fish have little to none. For the scale, it is unclear to
count and identify the type of scale the fish possesses due to the scale being extremely small,
invisible to the naked eye and the scale is covered by a layer of membrane. Each type of fish
scale performs a specific function and has evolved over time to fulfill the needs of various fish
species. The fish also have a small jaw for about 0.4 cm which proves that the species consume
small animals such as plankton or benthic invertebrates. This also helps to prove that the habitat
of the fish is near the benthic.

Every of these fins has their own functions like a dorsal fin functions to stabilize by
helping for quick changes in direction and also help caudal and anal fins for braking. Then, anal
fin function for braking. Then, caudal fin function for control motion of fish and there are several
types if caudal fins which are pointed tail, pointed caudal, round caudal, truncate caudal,
emarginate caudal, forked caudal, lunate caudal and heterocercal caudal. For this experiment, the
type of caudal fins the fish possesses is forked. Fish that spend most of their time cruising and
searching for prey have forked caudal fins. A forked tail has less drag. When a fish locates a
potential meal, a quick flick of the tail will give a sudden burst of speed. Fish mouths also come
in a variety of sizes, shapes, and orientations, each of which tells a great deal about what and
where the fish eats, as well as something about its behavior. The fish in this experiment have a
retracted, protrusible shape of mouth. A protrusible mouth allows a fish to extend its reach when
attempting to snatch prey or food particles. Fish with a protrusible and hinged terminal mouth
can create a vacuum when they open their mouths, thus sucking in their prey.

Fish have a system of muscles for movement. Muscle contractions ripple through the
body in waves from head to tail. The contractions whip the tail fin against the water to propel the
fish through the water. In the fish, trunk muscles can be broadly divided into hypaxial muscles,
which lie ventral to the horizontal septum of the vertebrae and epaxial muscles, which lie dorsal
to the septum. Epaxial muscles are specialized for maintenance of posture, whereas hypaxial
muscles are responsible for locomotion in the terrestrial environment, prey-capturing, and
respiration. From the result in Exercise C (1), the fish have a “W” shaped muscular structure.
Fish axial muscle consists of a series of W-shaped muscle blocks, called myomeres, that are
composed primarily of multinucleated contractile muscle cells (myofibres) gathered together by
an intricate network of connective tissue that transmits forces generated by myofibre contraction
to the axial skeleton.

Fish have their own skeletal systems, making them vertebrate animals. The fish's skeleton
serves as support for the body, as well as for movement and defence. The skull, vertebral
column, tail, and fins are only a handful of the components that make up a fish's skeleton. Fish
fins were separated into two categories: unpaired fins and paired fins. This feature of fish allows
them to swim because their fins can support their appendicular skeleton. Dorsal, caudal, and anal
fins make up a fish's unpaired fins; pectoral and pelvic fins make up its paired fins.

5.0 CONCLUSION
Based on the result and discussion, we can observe and understand the characteristics of
the fish properly. We can also have an understanding of how those characteristics can aids in
identifying the species of the fish. Thus, based on all of the results and discussion, we can
conclude that the species of the fish is the genus Mene, the sole extant genus of the family
Menidae. The fish external have a similar appearance to the one in genus Mene fish. The fish had
body colour with upper sides deep metallic blue, the rest silvery, a row of round to ovoid, dark
slaty-blue spots above and below lateral line, sometimes a few additional spots above and below
these rows; pelvic fins with a trace of blue, other fins hyaline or slightly dusky