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chondrichthyan: Quick Facts

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Facts

Also Known As Chondrichthyes • chondrichthian • cartilaginous fish • Selachii

Photos

southern stingray (Dasyatis americana or Hypanus americanus)
Bull shark (Carcharhinus leucas) swimming close to the sandy ocean floor in clear blue water.
remora and shark
Shark body plans
Selachii
Illustration of two primitive sharklike fishes from the class Chondrichthyes: Hybodus, depicted at the top with a robust body and prominent fins, and Cladoselache, shown below with a slender body and elongated tail.
Diagram showing four types of fish scales: ctenoid scales from a bass, cycloid scales from a salmon, ganoid scales from a gar, and placoid scales from a shark, each illustrated with a close-up and the corresponding fish silhouette.
phyletic family tree for fishes
Diagram of the tree of life based on the three-domain system, showing Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukaryota branching into four kingdoms: Plants, Animals, Fungi, and Protista, with illustrations of representative organisms for each group.
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