Glennallen High Marine Biology Class Dissects Sharks

 

Dissecting Sharks (Photo, GHS)

 

Students in Marine Biology Class dissected Spiny Dogfish Sharks, which is the most abundant shark in the world. 

Students observed the differences in external and internal anatomy. This is the first vertebrate they've dissected in class. 

Students observed the large oily liver, necessary for buoyancy, the unique valvular intestine, and the sharks' specialized skin made of tiny little teeth-like scales called dermal denticles. 

Although its skeleton is made of flexible cartilage, sharks are the first organism in the phylum Chordata that has a vertebra. 

Marine Biology Class, December 14th, 2020 (Photo, GHS)