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How do pharyngeal teeth help some perciform fishes eat clams and snails?

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Bluefin tuna swimming underwater in a group, with silvery bodies and streamlined shapes, near Japan. — perciform Bluefin tuna (*Thunnus thynnus orientalis*) in the waters near Japan.

In some species of perciform fishes, enlarged pharyngeal (throat) teeth are specifically adapted to process hard-shelled prey. These teeth are used for grinding and crushing the shells of clams and snails, allowing the fish to access the soft tissue inside.1