(Redirected from
Chimaera (fish))
| Chimaera |
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Ratfish |
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Callorhynchidae
Rhinochimaeridae
Chimaeridae |
- Other meanings, based on a fantastic animal, are at Chimera
Chimaera is the common name of the species in the families Callorhynchidae, Rhinochimaeridae and Chimaeridae which all are closely related to sharks; they are also called ghost sharks.
Chimaeras live in temperate ocean floors and grow to be up to 2 meters. As all members of the chondrichthyes class, chimaeras have a cartilage instead of a skeleton. The skin is smooth and lacks scales, and its color can range from black to brownish gray.
For defense, the chimaera has a poisonous spine located in front of its dorsal fin.
Chimaeras resemble sharks in some ways: they employ claspers for internal fertilization of females and they lay eggs with leathery cases. They differ from sharks in that their upper jaw is fused with the skull; they also have separate anal and urogenital openings.
