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By Abigail Lynch

A blog about fish words!

Placoid denticles

Posted by abby on September 25, 2015
While these Great White placoid denticles may look like scales, they are actually modified teeth (Trevor Sewell/Electron Microscope Unit, University of Cape Town).

While these Great White placoid denticles may look like scales, they are actually modified teeth (Trevor Sewell/Electron Microscope Unit, University of Cape Town).

Placoid denticles are found on sharks, rays, and chimaeras.  Not really a true “scale,” like ctenoid or cycloid scales, placoid denticles are actually modified teeth.  They have an inner tissue component, which contains both blood vessels and nerves, that is covered by a layer of dentin and an outer enamel.  They form a tough protective skin layer for sharks, rays, and chimaeras and also have shown to reduce friction and drag so that these fish can swim more efficiently through water.

Posted in: P | Tagged: chimaera, chondrichthyes, ctenoid, cycloid, placoid denticles, placoid scale, rays, scales, sharks

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