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Narrative
Sharks and rays (Elasmobranchi), cartilaginous fishes, deserve to be a class separate from the normal fish, in that they do not have a bone skeleton but rather a cartilage skeleton.
Fertilization is internal in this class which also separates them from the bony fish class. Although there are a few fresh water species, the majority of the species in this class are found in salt water. As of 2005, there were about 500 known species of sharks and about 600 known species of rays.
David Ebert, author of a recent book on sharks, rays, and chimaeras of California, counts a total of 988 described species in the class with about 150 additional species awaiting scientific description. He breaks down the described species to 410 species of sharks, 543 species of rays, and 35 species of chimaeras.
Taxonomy
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Latin
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English
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Kingdom
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Animalia
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Animal
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Phylum
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Chordata
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Backboned Animals
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Class
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Elasmobranchi
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Sharks, Rays, and Relatives
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Order
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Family
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SubFamily
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References
| Title | Author | Comments |
| The Shark Almanac | Allen, Thomas B. | This book is a fully illustrated natural history of sharks, skates, and rays. In addition to supplying sufficient information to identify most shark species, there is considerable narrative of great interest. With 274 pages, this is an excellent book. |
| Sharks, Rays, and Chimaeras of California | Ebert, David A. | Although this excellent work could pass as a field guide, this 284 page book qualifies for much higher recognition! |
| Sharks, Skates, and Rays of the Carolinas | Schwartz, Frank J. | Mr. Schwartz observes there are 56 shark and 35 skate and ray species known from the western Atlantic and the inland waters of the Carolinas. He has entries for all these species. Included are a paragraph on distinguishing features, a paragraph on distribution, and a mention of maximum size. Line drawings with sufficient detail to identify the species are also included. We recommend this book. |
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| Genus | Species |
| Abies | cephalonica |
| Abies | forrestii |
| Abies | numidica |
| Abies | pinsapo |
| Abies | veitchii |
| Abramis | ballerus |
| Abramis | brama |
| Abramis | sapa |
| Acacia | tortuosa |
| Acacia | wrightii |
| Acantharchus | pomotis |
| Acanthocybium | solanderi |
| Accipiter | albogularis |
| Accipiter | badius |
| Accipiter | bicolor |
| Accipiter | brachyurus |
| Accipiter | brevipes |
| Accipiter | buergersi |
| Accipiter | butleri |
| Accipiter | castanilius |
| Accipiter | chionogaster |
| Accipiter | cirrhocephalus |
| Accipiter | collaris |
| Accipiter | erythrauchen |
| Accipiter | erythronemius |
| Accipiter | erythropus |
| Accipiter | fasciatus |
| Accipiter | francesii |
| Accipiter | griseiceps |
| Accipiter | gularis |
| Accipiter | gundlachi |
| Accipiter | haplochrous |
| Accipiter | henicogrammus |
| Accipiter | henstii |
| Accipiter | imitator |
| Accipiter | luteoschistaceus |
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