Epibranchial organ

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An epibranchial organ is a device of several primitive families of the real bony fish (Teleostei) with plankton or microbenthos food, formerly known as “Clupeacei” . It produces mucus and is used to concentrate this food. Epibranchial organs emerged as paired bulges of the dorsal pharynx area , start from the last (fifth) gill and are usually covered with many gill spines.

Epibranchial organs occur in the African ossicle ( Heterotis niloticus ), many herring-like species (Clupeiformes), the sandfish-like species (Gonorynchiformes), the golden salmon-like species (Argentiniformes) and the straight tetras (Citharinidae).

literature

  • Wilfried Westheide , Reinhard Rieger: Special Zoology. Part 2: Vertebrae and Skull Animals. 1st edition. Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, Heidelberg / Berlin 2004, ISBN 3-8274-0307-3 , p. 259.