Page 41 - Fish and Amphibians (Britannica Illustrated Science Library)

36 LIFE IN THE WATER FISH AND AMPHIBIANS 37

The Best Disguise Sharp Enough to Cut

The sharp blades of the yellow tang's caudal
o face their enemies, fish have developed a number of appendage look like scalpels. This fish can
retract and extend its blades at will to hurt
strategies to enable them to survive. Some of these potential attackers. The fish eats only algae;
T are escaping, hiding in the ocean bed, or stirring up it measures some 20 inches (50 cm) long.
sand to avoid being seen. Other species have poison, and
some can inflate and raise barbs or spines to discourage
predators. In the oceans' depths are fish that have
luminous organs that blind the enemy.

Spot-Fin Porcupine Fish

Like its relative the globefish, this fish predator. This fish has another
swallows water when it feels defense mechanism: its modified
threatened, swelling up to three times scales act as barbs. When the fish's
YELLOW TANG This fish frequently
its normal size. This makes it very size increases, the scales extend swims in schools
difficult to fit inside the mouth of a perpendicularly from the skin. Zebrasoma with fish of other
flavescens species.
Spinal column
The spine
curves.

Water Stomach

HOW IT INFLATES
The water enters through the fish's Strange Garden
mouth. The stomach stores water Garden eels can bury much of their body
and begins to increase in size. The in the sandy seafloor and become stiff. A
spinal column and the skeleton are group of buried garden eels looks like a
flexible and adapt. If the fish is The stomach colony of algae or coral, even though their tiny
fills with
taken out of the water, it can eyes are on the lookout for the small species
water.
inflate in a similar way by they eat. At the slightest sign of danger, they
swallowing air. go into their burrows.

The eel hardens its
muscled body and
Eels in a buries its tail, leaving
group its head in the open.
Walls covered with
mucus secreted by
the skin of the
animal's tail

GARDEN EEL
Taenioconger hassi
At Rest Self-Defense STIFF SPINES
The scales of the porcupine fish lie flat against Inflated porcupine fish can reach a diameter of up to 35 Modified scales, hard and resistant,
its body, and its appearance is no different from inches (90 cm). This makes swallowing them impossible SPOT-FIN are found all over its body, except for
the tail. When these scales are
that of any other bony fish. When it deflates for medium-size predators, which are frightened simply PORCUPINE FISH extended, it is almost impossible for a
after an attack, it returns to its original state. by the porcupine fish's appearance. Diodon hystrix predator to bite or swallow this fish.