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Scale Type 2

One trait we use for identification in the museum is the shape of a fish’s scales. Fish scales protect the fish from parasites, and predators, and help fishes to move through the water more easily. Here, I’ve inserted a zoomed-in picture of a scale from this species.

 

Small Diplo
Diplo2

 

 

  1. Cycloid: One of the two main scale types for bony fishes. These scales are round, but not spiny like ctenoid are.

  2. Ctenoid: One of the two main scale types for bony fishes. Distinguished by the spiny or comb-like edge these scales have.

  3. Ganoid: These scales are diamond-shaped, and can be found on species such as sturgeons and gars.

  4. Placoid: Found in sharks and rays, these have a ridge or spine on them, giving them the name “dermal denticles” (because they look like teeth).

  5. Cosmoid: Found in lungfishes and some other fossil fishes, this scale type is not found in the Green River Formation. No need to worry about this right now.