This is not a Photoshop job. This is the very real toothy smile of sheepshead fish. It lives in North America, writes Becky Crew at the Running Ponies blog. And, like humans, it has both incisors and molars — perfect for masticating an omnivorous diet. Apparently, they also taste good, which should be some consolation. Worse comes to worse, we can always eat them.

"The earliest sawfishes likely arose in the shallow Tethys Sea, that ocean surrounded by the ancient continents of Godwanda and Laurasia, during the Cretaceous period at least 60 million years ago," writes Dr. M. at Deep Sea News.

These "sole survivors of an ancient bloodline" now number only seven species which roam the muddy bottoms of coastal areas, bays and estuaries. 

All sawfishes can move easily between fresh and saltwater and often venture deep upstream into rivers. The sawfish lifestyle puts this both their size and saw near humans.  All seven species are considered critically endangered by the IUCN.  As much as we have impacted them, sawfish have also greatly influenced our culture.

And now, they're one of the most threatened species on our planet. Thanks, humans!

More: Exaltation to Extinction for Sawfishes [Deep Sea News]]]> http://boingboing.net/2013/02/19/an-appreciation-of-the-sawfish.html/feed 6 http://boingboing.net/2013/01/07/what-you-can-learn-from-the-mi.html http://boingboing.net/2013/01/07/what-you-can-learn-from-the-mi.html#comments Mon, 07 Jan 2013 21:34:24 +0000 Maggie Koerth-Baker http://boingboing.net/?p=204458 the size of the fish in question.) But the amount paid for this specimen of a chronically overfished species doesn't really represent simple supply and demand, explains marine biologist Andrew David Thaler. It shouldn't be read as a measurement of tuna scarcity, he says, but rather as an artifact of culture (and marketing). ]]> http://boingboing.net/2013/01/07/what-you-can-learn-from-the-mi.html/feed 6 http://boingboing.net/2012/11/26/it-is-not-good-to-be-a-weightl.html http://boingboing.net/2012/11/26/it-is-not-good-to-be-a-weightl.html#comments Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:31:11 +0000 Maggie Koerth-Baker http://boingboing.net/?p=196219

Maybe somebody who speaks German can explain why this poor goldfish is being tortured. It's certainly interesting to watch the water in its tank float and blob around — while the fish struggles to follow. But I'm really unclear on the point of this particular experiment.

Via Miriam Goldstein

Dolphin carcasses are displayed by conservationists and environmental police officers at San Jose beach, 40kms north of Chiclayo, Peru, on April 6, 2012. The cause of death of over 800 dolphins in the last four months on the shores of Piura and Lambayeque are still being researched, Gabriel Quijandria, Deputy Environment Minister said on April 20, 2012. More about the ongoing investigation into the possible cause of these mass die-offs: CBS News, MSNBC, AFP, DPA, CNN, (REUTERS/Heinze Plenge)

]]> http://boingboing.net/2012/04/24/why-have-almost-900-dead-dolph.html/feed 18 http://boingboing.net/2012/04/22/greedy-anglerfish-sculpture-fo.html http://boingboing.net/2012/04/22/greedy-anglerfish-sculpture-fo.html#comments Mon, 23 Apr 2012 03:09:49 +0000 Cory Doctorow http://boingboing.net/?p=156154
"Avaritia" is a new mixed-media assemblage from Jud Turner: "The name is taken from the Latin term for 'greed' and the bait this mechanized angler fish is using is a coin from 1799. Heightening my enjoyment of the subject (greed) it's a commission for a German financier!"

"Avaritia" ]]> http://boingboing.net/2012/04/22/greedy-anglerfish-sculpture-fo.html/feed 18 http://boingboing.net/2012/03/14/x-ray-of-a-scorpion-fish.html http://boingboing.net/2012/03/14/x-ray-of-a-scorpion-fish.html#comments Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:45:36 +0000 Maggie Koerth-Baker http://boingboing.net/?p=149268

The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History has a new exhibit up dedicated to x-ray portraiture of fish. All the shots were taken by Sandra Raredon, a museum specialist in the Division of Fishes (which is kind of a wonderful title, yes?)

I dig this because, on verbal description, this sounds rather dull. X-rays of fishes. Great. But when you actually see the images you remember two very important facts: First, fishes have tons of little, teeny bones packed into a relatively small body; Second, fishes come in a wide variety of frequently crazy shapes. That all adds up to fish x-rays being way more interesting than you might initially guess.

Take the scorpionfish. In real life, this family tends to look a bit like a bunch of Muppet trolls—runaway cast members from "Labyrinth" or something. In x-ray, you can see past the wild colors and stubbly, camouflage skin to spot the spines these fish use for delivering a numbing, toxic poison.

Check out all the fish x-rays at the Encyclopedia of Life.

This is a great find by Not Exactly Rocket Science's Ed Yong. A tourist and a couple of researchers from the California Academy of Sciences have documented an instance of Pacific-dwelling jawfish hiding from predators by blending into the stripes of well-known camouflage guru, the mimic octopus.

This relationship is probably a rare occurrence. The black-marble jawfish is found throughout the Pacific from Japan to Australia, while the mimic octopus only hangs around Indonesia and Malaysia. For most of its range, the jawfish has no octopuses to hide against. Instead, Ross and Rocha think that this particular fish is engaging in “opportunistic mimicry”, taking advantage of a rare chance to share in an octopus’s protection.

Video Link

Thanks, Atvaark!

Neat post about an experimental plastic substitute made from fish scales over at Brian Lam's ocean-themed blog Scuttlefish. So far art student Erik de Laurens "has made not only goggles, but eye-glass frames, drinking cups, and a wooden table with a fish scale inlay" from fish scales.]]> http://boingboing.net/2011/07/25/swim-goggles-made-from-fish-scales.html/feed 7