Fishes own skeleton that operates as internal support structure. This skeleton is made of bone in bony fishes or from cartilage in cartilaginous fishes. Rays skates chimaeras and sharks have vertebral column although it is not bone.
It forms the main part of that skeleton and assembles from vertebrae. Those vertebrae manifest strong but lightweight. The fish body divides in head trunk and tail although to the outside you no always notices those limits.
Fish Spine and How It Helps Identify Fish
For identify fishes according to vertebrae you must observe certain attributes. Between them is the size the form and the curvature of the bone. You also controls whether lack or show particular anatomical attributes.
For instance every species has distinctive vertebral form and amount. That helps to well recognize fishes from remains in stomachs. The tuna vertebrae project because of its typical size and shape.
Some vertebrae as the precaudal connect to ribs. Others caudal have hemal spine that lets pass the caudal artery and veins. The vertebral column forms the central nucleus of the spine.
In compared anatomy it coincides with the vertebral column of other vertebrates.
Observing those bones many details attract attention. Each vertebra have body or center. Other elements are the neural spine neural arch and neural channel.
In addition exist hemal arch hemal channel and hemal spine. Some vertebrae bear hemal zygapophysis that shows distinctly. You can note also transverse processes keels ridges or foramina so little holes.
Those processes occasionally connect to ribs or other bones. The size form and presence of those attributes ranges between species. They adjust even according to different parts of the vertebral column in one fish.
Identification dificilts with fragmented bits. Traditional methods require benchmark collections with every part of the neural spine for every taxon. In regions with rich diversity as the Indo-Pacific that does big problem.
Some vertebrae like to those of sharks or average fishes. Even hardly you separates fish bones of dolphin either little whale vertebrae. Some bones have suture lines or grooves that serves for articulation.