Chimaera

Chimaera
Ratfish
: Animalia : Chordata : Chondrichthyes : Chimaeriformes
Families
Callorhynchidae Rhinochimaeridae Chimaeridae

Other meanings, based on a fantastic animal, are at Chimera

Chimaera is the common name of the species in the families Callorhynchidae, Rhinochimaeridae and Chimaeridae which all are closely related to sharks; they are also called ghost sharks.

Chimaeras live in temperate ocean floors and grow to be up to 2 meters. As all members of the chondrichthyes class, chimaeras have a cartilage instead of a skeleton. The skin is smooth and lacks scales, and its color can range from black to brownish gray.

For defense, the chimaera has a poisonous spine located in front of its dorsal fin.

Chimaeras resemble sharks in some ways: they employ claspers for internal fertilization of females and they lay eggs with leathery cases. They differ from sharks in that their upper jaw is fused with the skull; they also have separate anal and urogenital openings.