So you are eager to find out if birds can be considered fish or not? If this is the case then you’ve come to the right article as you’ll find the answer to this question directly below this intro. After answering the main question I’ll also answer a few more closely related questions, so make sure you keep on reading the article till the end.
Are birds considered fish? Birds are considered to be fish if you look far back in history (about 385 million years ago) then it can be said that every vertebrate animal like birds and humans are descendants of fish. But of course, nowadays we have given animals classifications to easily distinguish them from one another.
All vertebrate animals are members of the superclass Tetrapods. The superclass Tetrapods consist of all the descendants of a group of fish that originated from the sea 385 million years ago. The ancestors of the Tetrapods are called the “lobe-finned fish” which are of course a fish species.
So, through evolution and thanks to a lot of time, fish did evolve into birds. But birds developed new characteristics as they had to survive on land instead of in the water. Nowadays we don’t see birds as fish because birds do not contain the characteristics that are needed to call them fish.
Check out the video below if you want to see for yourself how fish evolved from breathing underwater to breathing air on land.
How is a bird different from a fish?
There are differences between birds and fish. Examples of these differences are:
- Birds possess wings, fish do not.
- Birds can fly, fish can not.
- Birds have feathers, fish have scales.
- Birds are warm-blooded and fish are cold-blooded.
- Birds have a unique respiratory system.
- Birds can blink, fish cannot.
- Birds have a four-chambered heart, fish have a two-chambered heart.
- Birds breathe with their lungs, fish breathe with their gills.
- Fish live in the water, birds do not.
- Fish have flippers, birds do not.
- Fish have fins, birds have limbs.
There are probably a lot more differences between birds and fish but above I’ve listed at least the most obvious ones. They do, however, also have different things in common. One example of a similarity between birds and fish is that they both require oxygen to survive.
How are birds and fish alike?
There are aspects that birds and fish have in common. Examples of these aspects are that both animals need the energy to hunt and to survive which they get from the foods they consume, they are both made up of cells, they both have bones, and they both require muscles to move around in the world.
These are just a few of the aspects that they have in common and there are a lot more like, for example, that they both have streamlined bodies that enables them to hunt prey and escape from predators, they both lay eggs, and that they both belong to the group Animalia.
If you can’t get enough of learning about birds then I encourage you to check out the “Birds Category Page” which consists of various articles that give answers to bird-related questions.
How are birds and fish similar in structure and function?
There are similarities in structure and functioning between birds and fish. Examples of these similarities are:
- Fish and birds have a supportive skeleton where muscles are attached to the skeleton that provides the animal to move.
- The main structures of a bird’s eye are similar to those of fish.
- Fish and birds have a digestive system.
- Fish and birds both lay eggs (except for the fish species that give live birth).
- Fish and birds both have light bones.
- Fish and birds both have streamlined bodies.
- Certain species of both fish and birds migrate each year.
There are most likely a lot more similarities between birds and fish when it comes to their structure and functioning but above at least the major ones are covered.
Why do birds and fish both have streamlined bodies?
There are both bird and fish species out there that mainly hunt for prey throughout their lives and therefore these species need to have a streamlined body to effectively hunt prey. The same can be said for bird and fish species that need to flee from other predators as these need to get away quickly.
A problem in their development can, for example, lead to a flaw in their normally streamlined body which can then result in being easy prey for another predator.
Are birds closely related to fish?
All vertebrate animals and therefore also birds are closely related to fish. All vertebrate animals belong to the superclass Tetrapods which have ancestors that are called “lobe-finned fish”. These ancestors are a species of fish that evolved into the vertebrate animals we know today.
Examples of other vertebrate animals are humans, bears, bats, dogs, cats, rodents, deer, lions, wolves, frogs, toads, salamanders, lizards, snakes, turtles, geckos, crocodiles, and many many more.
Did fish evolve into birds?
All the vertebrate animals that we know today exist because of evolution over a lot of years. All vertebrate animals including birds indeed evolved from the fish species called “lobe-finned fish” to what they’re now.
Also, all the vertebrates that aren’t classified as fish species today are given other classifications because the characteristics of these evolved animals changed. For example, we humans don’t have any flippers, fins, and gills to breathe. We now have lungs to breathe and unlike fish, we can blink at someone when we like somebody.
Related questions
To what class do birds belong?
Birds belong to the biological class Aves which is a class where all the different bird species that exist on this earth belong to. Some characteristics of birds that belong to the class Aves are that they are warm-blooded, lay hard-shelled eggs, and have a lightweight skeleton.
Are birds animals?
Birds are living organisms that feed on organic matter, have specialized sense organs, and they have a nervous system that can respond quickly to any stimuli. This is why birds are indeed animals just like all the other living organisms that live on this earth.
Are birds mammals?
Birds belong to the animal class Aves. They belong to the class Aves because birds contain the characteristics that are needed to be part of the class Aves. They are not seen as mammals because birds do not have all the characteristics that are needed to call them mammals.
Conclusion
Now you know that birds can be considered fish if you look far back in history. Fish pretty much evolved into birds and many other vertebrate animals over a very long amount of time. Even we humans are descendants of fish but of course, we do not call ourselves fish but just humans just like we call birds, birds, and not fish.