Dictionary of Ichthyology
This dictionary of ichthyology contains specialist terms used in the teaching of undergraduate students. The terms are arranged alphabetically for ease of reference.
In addition to ichthyology, terms from hydrobiology, zoology, anatomy, fish farming and other related disciplines are included.
Where terms have different interpretations, we have assigned the most common interpretation in our view.
This dictionary is constantly being added to and modified.
If you do not agree with the above interpretation of the Terms, please explain your understanding in the comments to these Terms.
We invite you to participate in the development of a modern ichthyological vocabulary.
We will consider any criticism and take it into account when describing dictionary terms.
Monotypic species
A monotypic species is a species that has only one population. There are very few such species on ea..
Moray eel
Moray eel (Muraenidae) is a family of fishes of the order Anguilliformes. The body is serpentine. Th..
Morphoedaphic Index (MEI)
Morphoedaphic Index (MEI) - the ratio of salinity to average lake depth. According to a number of re..
Mouth
Mouth - an apparatus used for capturing and holding prey, crushing, filtering and squeezing food. In..
Moving in
The process of transferring individuals of a species to a reservoir where the environmental conditio..
Mud flat
Mud flat - shallow areas of rivers and lakes with deposition of fine-grained material with high cont..
Mugilidae
Mugilidae is a family of ray-finned fishes of the order Mugiliformes. The head is broad. The mouth i..
Muksun
Muksun (Coregonus muksun) is a large semi-passable fish of the whitefish genus. Body length up to 70..
Muscular system
Muscular system is a set of muscles capable of contracting and performing mechanical work. Depending..
Myomeres
From Myo... and the Greek méros, part.A myomer is a separate muscle segment of the trunk musculature..
Nanoplankton
From the Greek nanos - dwarf and plankton.Nannoplankton are planktonic organisms with sizes less tha..
Native
Native – organisms historically indigenous to an area, e.g. native trout for Salvelinus fontinalis a..
Natural fish productivity
Natural fish productivity is the total growth of fish obtained during one growing season at the expe..
Needlefish (Belonidae)
Needlefish (Belonidae) is a family of fishes of the Sarganiformes (Beloniformes). It includes 12 gen..
Nekton
From ancient Greek νηκτός, "floating", "floating".Nekton is a set of free-swimming animals with well..