Pyloric appendages are blind growths of the intestine directly near the stomach, varying in number, size and shape depending on the species. For example, in carp, catfish, pike do not have them, in sturgeons they stick together, in perch they are only 3, in different species of salmon from 180 to 400. Their main purpose is to increase the absorptive surface of the intestine. Pyloric appendages contain enzymes that break down proteins, carbohydrates and fats.

Blindly terminating growths of the intestine, serving in many fish to increase its digestive surface and neutralize food during the transition from the acidic environment of the stomach to the alkaline intestine. Depart usually from the beginning of the small intestine, near the exit or directly from the pyloric part of the stomach. Among cartilaginous fish have only a few species and the number is small (for example, the polar shark has 2). Sturgeons have numerous pyloric appendages united by connective tissue into the so-called sturgeon umbilicus, which is like one branched appendage connected to the intestine by a common opening. In most bony fish, the pyloric appendages open into the intestine singly, sometimes in small groups; in some fish they are joined in bundles, and in tunas they are united into a single formation.