Click on the small images or names below
to access information on each type of True Bony Fish.
The category "Various True Bony Fishes" is kind
of a catch-all for a lot of families that don't fit into any other group!
There are about 25 families in the "Various True Bony Fishes" category. Included here are some of the more interesting
fish like the butterflyfish, arowanas, flounders, rainbows, and needlefish.
- True Bony Fish families having enough species to be placed in their own categories
can be found here: eels, knifefish, and puffers
- Another interesting category of very similar fish, but that are much older in an evolutionary sense than the True Bony Fishes, are the "Pseudo-Bony fishes". These include such families as gars, pikes, lungfish, and sturgeonfish to name a few.
We will start the "Various True Bony Fishes" category out with these interesting families:
- Osteoglossidae: The bony-tongued fishes which includes the Arowana.
- Pantodontidae: An easy family because it contains only one fish, the African Butterflyfish.
- Soleidae: The flatfishes, including fish such as tonguefish, soles and flounders.
Click on the small images below to access information
on each type of fish:
Bony-Tongued Fishes
Family: Osteoglossidae
The bony-tongued fishes comprise a number of large freshwater
species. There are four genera and six species.
The Arapaina (Arapaina gigas)
is one of the largest of all freshwater fish. Another member of this family,
the arowana (of which there are several kinds) is a fairly common aquarium
fish that usually surprises the owner with its' size and beauty.
African Butterflyfish
Family: Pantodontidae
This family is an easy one since it contains only one fish,
the Butterflyfish, African Butterflyfish or Freshwater Butterflyfish.
The Panodontidae is very similar
to the Osteoglossidae family but has significant
differences. The anal fin of the male has been transformed into the genital
organ. Also, the butterflyfish eggs are fertilized internally so the fry
are born alive. They are found in many parts of tropical Africa.
Flatfishes: Tonguefish, Soles, Flounders
Family: Soleidae
This family consists of 22 genera containing 89 species.
The name sole come from the latin word 'solea' which means sandal. As both the name 'sole' and the name 'flatfish' suggest, these are flat, bottom dwelling fish. They have elongated bodies with both eyes on one side (the right side) and a single gill shaped like a slit at the base of the throat. They can breathe atmostpheric air both through this gill cavity and from parts of the hind gut, enabling some species to live at the waters edge.
These fish are found in tropical areas of America, Africa, Asia, and Australia; primarily in the ocean but with some that are found in both brackish and freshwaters.
Don't see your favorite flounder, arowana, needlefish,
or other True Bony Fish here?
Send us a a picture and/or description and we'll try to include it!
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