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Osteoglossiformes
Osteoglossiformes , meaning "bony tongues" in Ancient Greek, is a relatively primitive order of ray-finned fish that contains two sub-orders, the Osteoglossoidei and the Notopteroidei. All of at least 245 living species inhabit freshwater. They are found in South America, Africa, Australia and southern Asia, having first evolved in Gondwana before that continent broke up. In 2008, several new species of marine osteoglossiforms were described from the Danish Eocene Fur Formation, dramatically increasing the diversity of this group. This implies that the Osteoglossomorpha is not a primary freshwater fish group with the osteoglossiforms having a typical Gondwana distribution. The Gymnarchidae (the only species being '' Gymnarchus niloticus'', the African knifefish) and the Mormyridae are weakly electric fish able to sense their prey using electric fields. The mooneyes (Hiodontidae) are often classified here, but may also be placed in a separate order, Hiodontiformes. Members ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Osteoglossoidei
Osteoglossoidei are a suborder of the order Osteoglossiformes (Latin: "bony tongues") that contains the butterflyfish, the arowana Arowanas are freshwater bony fish of the subfamily Osteoglossinae, also known as bony tongues (the latter name is now often reserved for Arapaiminae). In this family of fish, the head is bony and the elongated body is covered by large, heavy sca ...s and bonytongues, as well as extinct families. References Osteoglossiformes {{Osteoglossiformes-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pantodontidae
Pantodontidae is a Family (biology), family of ray-finned fish in the order Osteoglossiformes. It contains the living freshwater butterflyfish (''Pantodon buchholzi'') of Africa, as well as several extinct marine species from the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) of the Sannine Formation in Lebanon. Taxonomy The Cretaceous marine pantodontids are among the earliest known marine Osteoglossomorpha, osteoglossomorph genera. They physically differ greatly from ''Pantodon'', to the extent that some of them were previously considered either ancestral Codlet, codlets or crestfish, but they all share specific cranial elements with the extant ''Pantodon'', supporting their relationship to it. They seem to form a grade leading to the extant ''Freshwater butterflyfish, Pantodon'', where ''Capassopiscis'' appears to be the most Basal (phylogenetics), basal genus, while ''Palaeopantodon'' appears to be the Sister group, sister genus to ''Pantodon'', with the rest occupying successive positions ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Notopteroidei
Notopteroidei is a suborder of the order Osteoglossiformes that contains the extant families Gymnarchidae (aba), Notopteridae (feather backs and knifefish) and Mormyridae (elephantfishes), as well as several extinct taxa. The Mormyridae are weakly electric fish An electric fish is any fish that can Bioelectrogenesis, generate electric fields, whether to sense things around them, for defence, or to stun prey. Most fish able to produce shocks are also electroreceptive, meaning that they can sense electric ...es, able to locate prey in turbid water. References Osteoglossiformes Ray-finned fish suborders {{Osteoglossiformes-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gymnarchus Niloticus
The African knifefish, ''Gymnarchus niloticus'' – also called the ''aba aba'' – is an electric fish, living at the bottoms of rivers and lakes. It is the only species in the genus ''Gymnarchus'' and the family Gymnarchidae, within the order Osteoglossiformes. It is a long slender fish with no pelvic or anal fins, and a tail fin shaped like a rat's tail. It swims using its elongated dorsal fin, allowing it to keep its body straight while it moves. This in turn enables it to produce a steady but weak electric field, which it uses to locate its prey. It is large for a river fish; adults can reach 1.6 m (5.2 ft) in length and 19 kg (42 lb) in weight. In 1950, Hans Lissmann noticed that the fish could swim equally well forwards or backwards, clearly relying on a sense other than vision. He demonstrated that it could locate prey by electroreception, making it the first fish known to have this ability. The fish is considered good to eat in West Africa, wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Weakly Electric Fish
An electric fish is any fish that can Bioelectrogenesis, generate electric fields, whether to sense things around them, for defence, or to stun prey. Most fish able to produce shocks are also electroreceptive, meaning that they can sense electric fields. The only exception is the Uranoscopidae, stargazer family (Uranoscopidae). Electric fish, although a small minority of all fishes, include both oceanic and freshwater species, and both cartilaginous and bony fishes. Electric fish produce their electrical fields from an Electric organ (biology), electric organ. This is made up of electrocytes, modified muscle or nerve cells, specialized for producing strong electric fields, used to locate prey, for Anti-predator adaptation, defence against predators, and for Signalling theory, signalling, such as in courtship. Electric organ discharges are two types, pulse and wave, and vary both by species and by function. Electric fish have evolved many specialised behaviours. The predatory Cla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wakinoichthiidae
''Wakinoichthys'' is a small freshwater fish from the Early Cretaceous (Albian) of South Korea and Japan. Two species are currently known, ''W. aokii'' and ''W. robustus''. History and naming The first specimens of ''Wakinoichthys'' have been discovered from the Gamou Formation (referred to as Third Formation) of the Wakino Subgroup, a part of the Kanmon Group from Kitakyushu, Japan. Starting in 1977 Japanese and Korean researchers have cooperated in excavating fossils from the Jinju Formation of the Gyeongsang Supergroup in South Korea, previously known to have yielded the fossils of plants and molluscs. In these collaborative efforts multiple fossil fish had been discovered, including a specimen of ''Wakinoichthys''. First described in 1994, the generic name derives from the Wakino Subgroup and ichthys, the Greek word for fish. ''W. aokii'' was named for Mr. Tateyu Aoki, who collected and donated the specimens to the Kitakyushu Museum and Institute of Natural History, while ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fur Formation
The Fur Formation is a marine geological formation of Ypresian ( Lower Eocene Epoch, c. 56.0-54.5 Ma) age which crops out in the Limfjord region of northern Denmark from Silstrup via Mors and Fur to Ertebølle, and can be seen in many cliffs and quarries in the area. The Diatomite Cliffs (''moler'' in Danish) is on the Danish list of tentative candidates for World Heritage and may become a World Heritage site. Fossils found in the Fur Formation are primarily housed at the Fossil and Mo-clay Museum on Mors Island, the Fur Museum on Fur Island, and the Natural History Museum of Denmark (formerly named Geological Museum) in Copenhagen. Geology The Fur Formation is a unit of diatomitic sediment approximately 60 meters thick consisting of diatoms and clay minerals with up to 180 layers of volcanic ash. In Danish literature the formation has informally been referred to as the ''moler'' (''Ler'' means clay). The diatomite comprises 2/3 opal tests of diatoms and 1/3 clay, interbedded ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hiodontidae
Hiodontidae, commonly called mooneyes, is a family (biology), family of Actinopterygii, ray-finned fish with a single monotypic, included genus ''Hiodon''. The genus comprise two extant species native to North America and three to five extinct species recorded from Paleocene to Eocene age fossils. They are large-eyed, fork-tailed fish that superficially resemble shads. The vernacular name comes from the metallic shine of their eyes. The higher classification of the mooneyes is not yet fully established. Some sources have place them in their own order, Hiodontiformes, while others retain them in the order Osteoglossiformes. Species *''Hiodon alosoides'' (Rafinesque, 1819) The goldeye, ''Hiodon alosoides'', is widespread across eastern North America, and is notable for a conspicuous golden Iris (anatomy), iris in the eyes. It prefers turbid slower-moving waters of lakes and rivers, where it feeds on a wide variety of organisms including insects, crustaceans, small fish, and moll ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mormyridae
The Mormyridae, sometimes called "elephantfish" (more properly freshwater elephantfish), are a superfamily of weakly electric fish in the order Osteoglossiformes native to Africa. It is by far the largest family in the order, with around 200 species. Members of the family can be popular, if challenging, aquarium species. These fish have a large brain size and unusually high intelligence. They are not to be confused with the marine and brackish-water callorhinchid elephantfish (family Callorhinchidae) of Southern Hemisphere oceans. Description and biology The elephantfish are a diverse family, with a wide range of different sizes and shapes. The smallest are just in adult length, while the largest reach up to . They do, however, have a number of unique features in common. Firstly, their cerebellum is greatly enlarged, enabling them to interpret complex bio-electrical signals, and to the large size of the valve. Secondly, an auditory vesicle (a small bladder) is present insid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Osteoglossidae
Osteoglossidae is a family of large-sized freshwater fish, which includes the arowanas. They are commonly known as bonytongues. The family has been regarded as containing two extant subfamilies Arapaiminae and Osteoglossinae, with a total of five living genera, but these are regarded as valid families in '' Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes'' The extinct Phareodontinae are known from worldwide during the Late Cretaceous and Paleogene; they are generally considered to be crown group osteoglossids that are more closely related to one of the extant osteoglossid subfamilies than the other, though their exact position varies. Evolution Osteoglossids are basal teleosts that originated during the Cretaceous, and are placed in the actinopterygian order Osteoglossiformes. The traditionally defined wider family includes several extant species from South America, one from Africa, two from Asia, and two from Australia. The earliest known osteoglossid is '' Cretophareodus'' from the mi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hiodontiformes
Hiodontiformes is an order of ray-finned fish consisting of the two living species of the mooneye family, Hiodontidae, and three extinct genera. These are traditionally classified within the order Osteoglossiformes, a placement some authorities still follow. Fossil study of the extinct genus ''Yanbiania'' suggests that the hiodontids separated from other osteoglossomorphs early and thus may deserve a separate order. Taxonomy * Order Hiodontiformes McAllister 1968 sensu Taverne 1979 ** Genus †'' Chetungichthys'' Chang & Chou 1977 *** †''Chetungichthys brevicephalus'' Chang & Chou 1977 *** †''Chetungichthys dalinghensis'' Su 1991 ** Genus †'' Yanbiania'' Li 1987 *** †''Yanbiania wangqingica'' Li 1987 ** Genus †'' Plesiolycoptera'' Zhang & Zhou 1976 *** †''Plesiolycoptera daqingensis'' Zhang & Zhou 1976 *** †''Plesiolycoptera parvus'' ((Sytchevskaya, 1986) (syn ''Eohiodon (Gobihiodon) parvus'' Sytchevskaya, 1986) ** Family Hiodontidae (mooneyes) Valenciennes 18 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ray-finned Fish
Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of skin supported by radially extended thin bony spines called '' lepidotrichia'', as opposed to the bulkier, fleshy lobed fins of the sister clade Sarcopterygii (lobe-finned fish). Resembling folding fans, the actinopterygian fins can easily change shape and wetted area, providing superior thrust-to-weight ratios per movement compared to sarcopterygian and chondrichthyian fins. The fin rays attach directly to the proximal or basal skeletal elements, the radials, which represent the articulation between these fins and the internal skeleton (e.g., pelvic and pectoral girdles). The vast majority of actinopterygians are teleosts. By species count, they dominate the subphylum Vertebrata, and constitute nearly 99% of the over 30,000 extant ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
