Parts of a fish and their

functions
Parts of a fish and their
functions
 The eyes

The eyes of a fish are always open;

they have no eyelids.
 The mouth

The mouth is used to catch food.

Only some fish have teeth.
 The body

The body of the fish is protected by

a thin but hard coat of overlapping
scales and a coating of slime!
 The lateral line

The lateral line is a line of very small

pores (holes) that sense water
movements and vibrations.
 The gills

Fish use their gills to breathe. They

suck in water through their mouth and
breathe out through the gills.
 The tail

The tail is known as the caudal fin. It

swings from side to side to move
forwards, left and right in the water.
 The tail

Fish with a continuous caudal fin are

good at swimming in and around cracks
and crevices.
 The tail

Fish with lunate (moon-shaped) tail

tend to be the fastest swimmers and
can swim for a long time.
 The tail

Fish with forked tails swim constantly

without stopping (even when they are
asleep!)
 The tail

Fish with truncated or rounded tails

are usually strong, but slow,
swimmers.
 The fins

Fins are used for swimming and sometimes for

protection. They are made of skin with tiny
bones or cartilage in. Fins come in lots of shapes
and sizes.
 The dorsal fin

The dorsal fin is a spiny, hard fin that

helps to keep the fish upright.
 The pectoral fin

The pectoral fins help the fish move

from side-to-side. They are also
known as arm fins.
 The pelvic fin

This is also called the leg fin. It helps

the fish to move up, down and turn.
 The back fins

The fins at the back of the body stop

the fish from wobbling in the water.
 Thanks to…
• http://www.vtaide.com/png/fish.htm
for the fish image and main text
content

• http://learningparade.typepad.co.uk/lea
rning_parade/ for the Rainbow Fish cut
and paste image