Fish gave us legs—and four other finny facts
An Atlantic spotted mackerel with its skeleton stained for analysis. (© AMNH/J. Sparks/)For February, we’re focusing on the body parts that shape us, oxygenate us, and power us as we take long walks on the beach. Bony bonafide bones. These skeletal building blocks inspire curiosity and spark fear in different folks—we hope our stories, covering everything from surgeries and supplements to good old-fashioned boning, will only do the first. Once you’ve thoroughly blasted your mind with bone facts, check out our previous themed months: muscle and fat.As curator of ichthyology at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, John Sparks spends a lot of time counting fish bones. All day he gazes at tiny skeletons stained in fluorescent blues and purples to unlock new clues about vertebrate evolution. Turns out, fish bones contain plenty of secrets. Each species has quirky morphological variations that act much like a name...