Characteristics Of Amphibians Pdf

Mammals have four chambers in their hearts. In mammals, the main artery of the heart curves to the left when leaving the heart, becoming the aortic arch. This main artery curves to the right in birds, and all other vertebrates have more than one main artery.

Only mammals have a diaphragm: a sheet of muscle and tendon that separates the body cavity. Heart and lungs are in an upper section of the body cavity, and the liver, stomach, kidneys, intestines and reproductive organs are in the lower section. Complex Brain Functions.

Fish is an animal category that encompasses many species of water dwellers, and even a few species that do not spend all that much time in the water. There are several basic fish characteristics that are common to most fish, but only a few features of fish, like the presence of gills, can be applied to all fish. In fact, fish are the most diverse animal species among the vertebrates, with 32,000 different types of fish according to FishBase, a comprehensive database of information on fish used by researchers and zoologists. Another characteristic of many fish, though not all, is the presence of scales. Scales are a common evolutionary adaptation, meaning that they have come about through evolution on several separate occasions. Different kinds of scales exist, like the rough, sometimes sharp scales of a shark and the sharp, pointy scales of a blowfish.

Scales shield the body of the fish from the environment, protect the fish from predators, reduce drag for more efficient movement or perform some combination of those characteristics. Some fish, like Agnatha and eels, have no scales. Fins for Movement. Fins are an almost universal characteristic of fish. Many types of fins exist, but the most common are the tail fin, a matching pair of side fins, dorsal fins, and an anal fin. The general purpose of fins is to provide motion and maneuverability.

However, there are no set shapes, sizes, or even specific purposes for a particular kind of fin. Whereas many fish often use the tail fin to provide motion, a seahorse, for instance, uses its dorsal fin instead for the same purpose and has no tail fin. Water Habitat. Another characteristic of fish is that they live in water.

Characteristics Of Mammals

This may seem too obvious to be worth stating, but there are some fish that can spend significant amounts of time out of the water. Mudskippers, for instance eat and interact with each other on land, and often go underwater only to hide from predators. They do not have lungs but can breathe through their skin and keep their gills moist with water that they store internally. Typically, however, fish inherited traits like gills require water to survive. Cold-Blooded or Ectothermic Animals. Fish are cold-blooded, or ectothermic, which means they rely on the outside environment to regulate their body temperature.

Characteristics Of Amphibians For Kids

The body temperature of fish changes as the environment's temperature changes. Many fish species are extremely sensitive to these temperature changes while other species survive in a wide range of water temperatures. This is the opposite of mammals, for example, which rely on internal processes to maintain a constant body temperature. Fish and many other cold-blooded animals are sensitive to environmental changes like global warming for this physiological reason.