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Cloaca of a red-tailed hawk. A cloaca (/ k l oʊ ˈ eɪ k ə / ⓘ kloh-AY-kə), pl.: cloacae (/ k l oʊ ˈ eɪ s i / kloh-AY-see or / k l oʊ ˈ eɪ k i / kloh-AY-kee), or vent, is the rear orifice that serves as the only opening for the digestive (), reproductive, and urinary tracts (if present) of many vertebrate animals.
[citation needed] Most shark species have five gill slits on each side, however, some species can have up to six or seven like the sixgill sawshark and sharks in the order Hexanchiformes. [40] As part of their respiratory system, sharks also have an accessory respiratory opening called a spiracle behind their eyes. Spiracles are cartilaginous ...
Many sharks can contract and dilate their pupils, like humans, something no teleost fish can do. Sharks have eyelids, but they do not blink because the surrounding water cleans their eyes. To protect their eyes some species have nictitating membranes. This membrane covers the eyes while hunting and when the shark is being attacked.
A shark, also called a "selachimorph", can be described as all of the following: Animal – multicellular, eukaryotic organism of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. An animal's body plan eventually becomes fixed as it develops, although some types of animal undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life.
Male cartilaginous fish have claspers formed from the posterior portion of their pelvic fin which serve to channel semen into the female's cloaca during mating. The act of mating in some fish including sharks usually includes one of the claspers raised to allow water into the siphon through a specific orifice. The clasper is then inserted into ...
Frilled sharks, often called 'living fossils' are one of those lesser-known species -- and a man. Most shark reports concern the more common varieties, but there are more than 400 known species of ...
Fish typically have quite small brains relative to body size compared with other vertebrates, typically one-fifteenth the brain mass of a similarly sized bird or mammal. [59] However, some fish have relatively large brains, most notably mormyrids and sharks, which have brains about as massive relative to body weight as birds and marsupials. [60]
Shark bites are common in Volusia County, with blacktips and bull sharks mostly to blame. But the bites are rarely fatal. Here is what we know.