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triggerfish

(Encyclopedia)triggerfish, any of several species of tropical reef fishes with laterally compressed bodies, heavy scales, and tough skins. They are named for the mechanism of the three spines of the dorsal fin: whe...

toothfish

(Encyclopedia)toothfish, common name for a genus (Dissostichus) of deep-water marine ray-finned fishes found in waters off S South America to Antarctica. The Patagonian toothfish, D. eleginoides, is the northerly o...

mullet

(Encyclopedia)mullet, blunt-nosed, tropical and temperate water fishes of the family Mugilidae, found worldwide. Small schools of mullets frequent shallow waters, feeding on aquatic plants and on mud, which is grou...

snail darter

(Encyclopedia)snail darter, a small, rare fish, Percina tanasi, discovered by a zoologist who was snorkeling in the Little Tennessee River upstream from the projected Tellico Dam. Dam opponents fought successfully ...

soup

(Encyclopedia)soup, liquid food in which different kinds of solid food have been cooked, e.g., meat, fish, fowl, vegetables, cereals, or fruit. Many soups are peculiar to certain localities, e.g., the pot-au-feu of...

wrasse

(Encyclopedia)wrasse răs [key], common name for a member of the large family Labridae, brilliantly colored fishes found among rocks and kelp in tropical seas. Wrasses, related to the parrotfishes (which are includ...

oarfish

(Encyclopedia)oarfish, large, elongated fish, genus Regalecus, found in the oceans worldwide except for the polar regions. Oarfish species are solitary and rarely seen by humans. The giant oarfish, R. glesne, is th...

recapitulation

(Encyclopedia)recapitulation, theory, stated as the biogenetic law by E. H. Haeckel, that the embryological development of the individual repeats the stages in the evolutionary development of the species. For examp...

cavefish

(Encyclopedia)cavefish, common name for blind, cave-dwelling fishes of the family Amblyopsidae. The Amblyopsidae are mostly whitish fish, up to 5 in. (13 cm) long. With the exception of a single species, all member...

frozen foods

(Encyclopedia)frozen foods, products of the food preservation process of freezing. This process has been employed by people in the Arctic from prehistoric times. Eskimos throw fresh-caught fish on the ice to freeze...