Bony and cartilaginous fish

Fish are separated into two main types depending on what their skeleton is made of. Bony fish have skeletons made of bone, while cartilaginous fish have skeletons made of cartilage.

A memory aid that helps you remember bony and cartilaginous fish

The bony (bones) fish was driving a very powerful go kart (cartilage).

Examples

Image of a sharks skeleton made of cartilage

Cartilaginous skeleton of a shark.

Image of 90 percent of fish have bony skeletons

Bony skeleton of a fish.

Most fish (around 90 per cent) such as salmon and sticklebacks have skeleton made of bone.