ratfish
Shark's primitive cousin
Ratfish are cartilaginous fish related to sharks and rays, found in deep ocean waters.
They have large heads, long tapering tails, and smooth skin rather than scales—the tail giving them their name.
Also called chimaeras or ghost sharks, they're an ancient lineage that split from sharks over 400 million years ago.
Venomous-spined tropical marine fish
- chimaeraFabled composite monster
- deep-seaOf ocean depths
- bioluminescentEmitting light through biology
Very old indeed
- primitiveIn earliest form
- CarboniferousCoal-depositing geological period
- fossilPreserved ancient organism
- living fossilOrganism unchanged since prehistory
Paleozoic · unchanged · ancestral · Devonian · evolutionary · relict · archaic · Mesozoic
Of the sea bottom
- deep-seaOf ocean depths
- continental shelfSubmerged perimeter of landmass
- muddy bottomSilt-covered underwater ground
- cold waterFigurative enthusiasm killer
Pacific · Atlantic · temperate · submarine canyon · seafloor · bottom-dwelling
Oversized ocular organs
- pectoral finsFish steering appendages
- smooth skinUnblemished, even epidermis
- silveryPale metallic sheen
- iridescentShowing shifting spectral colors
Cartilaginous marine predator
- skateGliding boot or flatfish
- rayNarrow light emission
- cartilageFlexible connective body tissue
- skeletonInternal supportive framework
jaws · gills · placoid scales · vertebrate · spiracle
Soft-bodied invertebrates, often shelled
- crustaceansExoskeleton-bearing aquatic arthropods
- clamsEdible burrowing mollusks
- shrimpSmall edible crustacean
- wormsLimbless burrowing invertebrates
sea urchins · invertebrates · bottom feeder · crusher · scavenger · starfish · brittle stars
rabbitfish
Venomous-spined tropical marine fish
- chimaeraFabled composite monster
- deep-seaOf ocean depths
- bioluminescentEmitting light through biology
ancient
Very old indeed
- primitiveIn earliest form
- CarboniferousCoal-depositing geological period
- fossilPreserved ancient organism
living fossil · Paleozoic · unchanged · ancestral · Devonian · evolutionary · relict · archaic · Mesozoic
benthic
Of the sea bottom
- deep-seaOf ocean depths
- continental shelfSubmerged perimeter of landmass
- muddy bottomSilt-covered underwater ground
cold water · Pacific · Atlantic · temperate · submarine canyon · seafloor · bottom-dwelling
large eyes
Oversized ocular organs
- pectoral finsFish steering appendages
- smooth skinUnblemished, even epidermis
- silveryPale metallic sheen
shark
Cartilaginous marine predator
skeleton · jaws · gills · placoid scales · vertebrate · spiracle
mollusks
Soft-bodied invertebrates, often shelled
- crustaceansExoskeleton-bearing aquatic arthropods
- clamsEdible burrowing mollusks
- shrimpSmall edible crustacean
worms · sea urchins · invertebrates · bottom feeder · crusher · scavenger · starfish · brittle stars
ratfishshark
Cartilaginous marine predator
ray · skate · great white shark · hammerhead shark · mako shark
fish, rat, rattle, rodent, ratty, rattling, rattles, ratted, rattrap