Like other members of the class Chondrichthyes, chimaera skeletons are constructed of cartilage. Their skin is smooth and naked, lacking placoid scales (except in the claspers), and their color can range from black to brownish gray. For defense, most chimaeras have a venomous spine in front of the dorsal fin.

What is a characteristic trait of sharks rays and chimaeras?

Chimaeras have large heads and long bodies that taper to a whiplike tail. The skin is smooth and rubbery and has no scales. Sharks and skates and rays have gills that open to the outside, have no swim bladder, and have a sandpaper-like skin covering rather than scales. Sharks range in size from tiny to huge.

What type of scales do the chondrichthyes have?

Chondrichthyans have tooth-like scales called dermal denticles or placoid scales.