Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a

class Class or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differently ...

bony fish Osteichthyes (), popularly referred to as the bony fish, is a diverse superclass of fish that have skeletons primarily composed of bone tissue. They can be contrasted with the Chondrichthyes, which have skeletons primarily composed of cartila ...

. They comprise over 50% of living

vertebrate Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxon, taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () (chordates with vertebral column, backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the ...

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

. The ray-finned

fish Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% ...

es are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or horny spines (rays), as opposed to the fleshy, lobed fins that characterize the class

Sarcopterygii Sarcopterygii (; ) — sometimes considered synonymous with Crossopterygii () — is a taxon (traditionally a class or subclass) of the bony fishes known as the lobe-finned fishes. The group Tetrapoda, a mostly terrestrial superclass includ ...

(lobe-finned fish). These actinopterygian fin rays attach directly to the proximal or basal skeletal elements, the radials, which represent the link or connection between these fins and the internal skeleton (e.g., pelvic and pectoral girdles). By species count, actinopterygians dominate the

s, and they constitute nearly 99% of the over 30,000 species of fish. They are ubiquitous throughout

freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does in ...

and

marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

environments from the deep sea to the highest mountain streams. Extant species can range in size from ''

Paedocypris ''Paedocypris'' is a genus of tiny cyprinid fish found in swamps and streams on the Southeast Asian islands of Borneo, Sumatra and Bintan. ''Paedocypris progenetica'' has been claimed to be the one of smallest known species of fish in the worl ...

'', at , to the massive

ocean sunfish The ocean sunfish or common mola (''Mola mola'') is one of the largest bony fish in the world. It was misidentified as the heaviest bony fish, which was actually a different species, '' Mola alexandrini''. Adults typically weigh between . The sp ...

, at , and the long-bodied

oarfish Oarfish are huge, greatly elongated, pelagic lampriform fish belonging to the small family Regalecidae. Found in areas spanning from temperate ocean zones to tropical ones, yet rarely seen, the oarfish family contains three species in two gener ...

, at . The vast majority of Actinopterygii (~99%) are

teleost Teleostei (; Greek ''teleios'' "complete" + ''osteon'' "bone"), members of which are known as teleosts ), is, by far, the largest infraclass in the class Actinopterygii, the ray-finned fishes, containing 96% of all extant species of fish. Tel ...

Characteristics

Ray-finned fishes occur in many variant forms. The main features of typical ray-finned fish are shown in the adjacent diagram. The swim bladder is the more derived structure. Ray-finned fishes have many different types of scales; but all

s have leptoid scales. The outer part of these scales fan out with bony ridges, while the inner part is crossed with fibrous connective tissue. Leptoid scales are thinner and more transparent than other types of scales, and lack the hardened enamel or dentine-like layers found in the scales of many other fish. Unlike ganoid scales, which are found in non-teleost actinopterygians, new scales are added in concentric layers as the fish grows. Ray-finned and lobe-finned fishes sometimes possesses lungs used for aerial respiration. Only bichirs retain ventrally budding lungs.

Body shapes and fin arrangements

Ray-finned fish vary in size and shape, in their feeding specializations, and in the number and arrangement of their ray-fins.

Reproduction

In nearly all ray-finned fish, the sexes are separate, and in most species the females spawn eggs that are fertilized externally, typically with the male inseminating the eggs after they are laid. Development then proceeds with a free-swimming larval stage. However other patterns of

ontogeny Ontogeny (also ontogenesis) is the origination and development of an organism (both physical and psychological, e.g., moral development), usually from the time of fertilization of the egg to adult. The term can also be used to refer to the stu ...

exist, with one of the commonest being

sequential hermaphroditism Sequential hermaphroditism (called dichogamy in botany) is a type of hermaphroditism that occurs in many fish, gastropods, and plants. Sequential hermaphroditism occurs when the individual changes its sex at some point in its life. In particular ...

. In most cases this involves

protogyny Sequential hermaphroditism (called dichogamy in botany) is a type of hermaphroditism that occurs in many fish, gastropods, and plants. Sequential hermaphroditism occurs when the individual changes its sex at some point in its life. In particular ...

, fish starting life as females and converting to males at some stage, triggered by some internal or external factor.

Protandry Sequential hermaphroditism (called dichogamy in botany) is a type of hermaphroditism that occurs in many fish, gastropods, and plants. Sequential hermaphroditism occurs when the individual changes its sex at some point in its life. In particular, ...

, where a fish converts from male to female, is much less common than protogyny. Most families use

external External may refer to: * External (mathematics), a concept in abstract algebra * Externality, in economics, the cost or benefit that affects a party who did not choose to incur that cost or benefit * Externals, a fictional group of X-Men antagon ...

rather than

internal fertilization Internal fertilization is the union of an egg and sperm cell during sexual reproduction inside the female body. Internal fertilization, unlike its counterpart, external fertilization, brings more control to the female with reproduction. For intern ...

. Of the

oviparous Oviparous animals are animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive method of most fish, amphibians, most reptiles, and all pterosaurs, dinosaurs (including birds), a ...

teleosts, most (79%) do not provide parental care.

Viviparity Among animals, viviparity is development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. This is opposed to oviparity which is a reproductive mode in which females lay developing eggs that complete their development and hatch externally from the m ...

ovoviviparity Ovoviviparity, ovovivipary, ovivipary, or aplacental viviparity is a term used as a "bridging" form of reproduction between egg-laying oviparous and live-bearing viviparous reproduction. Ovoviviparous animals possess embryos that develop insi ...

, or some form of parental care for eggs, whether by the male, the female, or both parents is seen in a significant fraction (21%) of the 422 teleost families; no care is likely the ancestral condition. The oldest case of viviparity in ray-finned fish is found in

Middle Triassic In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided in chronostratigraphy. The Middle Triassic spans the time between Ma ...

species of ''

Saurichthys ''Saurichthys'' (from el, σαῦρος , 'lizard' and el, ἰχθῦς 'fish') is an extinct genus of predatory ray-finned fish from the Triassic period. It type genus family Saurichthyidae ( Changhsingian-Middle Jurassic), and the larges ...

''. Viviparity is relatively rare and is found in about 6% of living teleost species; male care is far more common than female care. Male territoriality "preadapts" a species for evolving male parental care. There are a few examples of fish that self-fertilise. The

mangrove rivulus The mangrove killifish or mangrove rivulus, ''Kryptolebias marmoratus'' (syn. ''Rivulus marmoratus''), is a species of killifish in the family Rivulidae. It lives in brackish and marine waters (less frequently in fresh water) along the coasts of ...

is an amphibious, simultaneous hermaphrodite, producing both eggs and spawn and having internal fertilisation. This mode of reproduction may be related to the fish's habit of spending long periods out of water in the mangrove forests it inhabits. Males are occasionally produced at temperatures below and can fertilise eggs that are then spawned by the female. This maintains genetic variability in a species that is otherwise highly inbred.

Classification and fossil record

Actinopterygii is divided into the classes

Cladistia Cladistia is a clade of bony fishes whose only living members are the bichirs. Their major synapomorphies are a heterocercal tail in which the dorsal fin has independent rays, and a posteriorly elongated parasphenoid. Cladistia are the earlies ...

and

Actinopteri Actinopteri is the sister group of Cladistia in the class Actinopterygii (ray-finned fish). Dating back to the Permian period, the Actinopteri comprise the Chondrostei ( sturgeons and paddlefish) and the Neopterygii ( bowfin, gars, and tele ...

. The latter comprises the subclasses

Chondrostei Chondrostei is a group of non-neopterygian ray-finned fish, while the term originally referred to a paraphyletic group of all non-neopterygian ray-finned fish, it was redefined by Patterson in 1982 to be a clade comprising the Acipenseriformes (w ...

and

Neopterygii Neopterygii (from Greek νέος ''neos'' 'new' and πτέρυξ ''pteryx'' 'fin') is a subclass of ray-finned fish (Actinopterygii). Neopterygii includes the Holostei and the Teleostei, of which the latter comprise the vast majority of extant ...

. The

, in turn, is divided into the infraclasses

Holostei Holostei is a group of ray-finned bony fish. It is divided into two major clades, the Halecomorphi, represented by a single living species, the bowfin ('' Amia calva''), as well as the Ginglymodi, the sole living representatives being the gars ...

and

Teleostei Teleostei (; Greek ''teleios'' "complete" + ''osteon'' "bone"), members of which are known as teleosts ), is, by far, the largest infraclass in the class Actinopterygii, the ray-finned fishes, containing 96% of all extant species of fish. Tele ...

. During the

Mesozoic The Mesozoic Era ( ), also called the Age of Reptiles, the Age of Conifers, and colloquially as the Age of the Dinosaurs is the second-to-last era of Earth's geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Creta ...

(

Triassic The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 Mya. The Triassic is the first and shortest period ...

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of ...

) and

Cenozoic The Cenozoic ( ; ) is Earth's current geological era, representing the last 66million years of Earth's history. It is characterised by the dominance of mammals, birds and flowering plants, a cooling and drying climate, and the current configu ...

the teleosts in particular

diversified Diversification may refer to: Biology and agriculture * Genetic divergence, emergence of subpopulations that have accumulated independent genetic changes * Agricultural diversification involves the re-allocation of some of a farm's resources to ...

widely. As a result, 96% of living fish species are teleosts (40% of all fish species belong to the teleost subgroup

Acanthomorpha Acanthomorpha (meaning "thorn-shaped") is an extraordinarily diverse taxon of teleost fishes with spiny rays. The clade contains about one third of the world's modern species of vertebrates: over 14,000 species. A key anatomical innovation in ...

), while all other groups of actinopterygians represent depauperate lineages. The classification of ray-finned fishes can be summarized as follows: * Cladistia, which include bichirs and reedfish * Actinopteri, which include: ** Chondrostei, which include Acipenseriformes (paddlefishes and sturgeons) ** Neopterygii, which include: ***Teleostei (most living fishes) ***Holostei, which include: ****Lepisosteiformes (gars) ****Amiiformes (bowfin) The

cladogram A cladogram (from Greek ''clados'' "branch" and ''gramma'' "character") is a diagram used in cladistics to show relations among organisms. A cladogram is not, however, an evolutionary tree because it does not show how ancestors are related to ...

below shows the main clades of living actinopterygians and their evolutionary relationships to other

extant Extant is the opposite of the word extinct. It may refer to: * Extant hereditary titles * Extant literature, surviving literature, such as ''Beowulf'', the oldest extant manuscript written in English * Extant taxon, a taxon which is not extinct, ...

groups of

fishes Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of liv ...

and the four-limbed vertebrates (

tetrapods Tetrapods (; ) are four-limb (anatomy), limbed vertebrate animals constituting the superclass Tetrapoda (). It includes extant taxon, extant and extinct amphibians, sauropsids (reptiles, including dinosaurs and therefore birds) and synapsids (p ...

). The latter include mostly terrestrial

but also groups that became secondarily aquatic (e.g. Whales and Dolphins). Tetrapods

evolved Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation te ...

from a group of

during the

Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Silurian, million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Carboniferous, Mya. It is named after Devon, England, w ...

period Period may refer to: Common uses * Era, a length or span of time * Full stop (or period), a punctuation mark Arts, entertainment, and media * Period (music), a concept in musical composition * Periodic sentence (or rhetorical period), a concept ...

. Approximate

divergence In vector calculus, divergence is a vector operator that operates on a vector field, producing a scalar field giving the quantity of the vector field's source at each point. More technically, the divergence represents the volume density of t ...

dates for the different actinopterygian clades (in millions of years, mya) are from Near et al., 2012. The polypterids (bichirs and reedfish) are the

sister lineage In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A a ...

of all other actinopterygians, the Acipenseriformes (sturgeons and paddlefishes) are the sister lineage of Neopterygii, and Holostei (bowfin and gars) are the sister lineage of teleosts. The

Elopomorpha The superorder Elopomorpha contains a variety of types of fishes that range from typical silvery-colored species, such as the tarpons and ladyfishes of the Elopiformes and the bonefishes of the Albuliformes, to the long and slender, smooth-bod ...

(

eel Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 19 families, 111 genera, and about 800 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...

s and

tarpon Tarpons are fish of the genus ''Megalops''. They are the only members of the family Megalopidae. Of the two species, one (''M. atlanticus'') is native to the Atlantic, and the other (''M. cyprinoides'') to the Indo-Pacific Oceans. Species an ...

s) appear to be the most

basal Basal or basilar is a term meaning ''base'', ''bottom'', or ''minimum''. Science * Basal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location for features associated with the base of an organism or structure * Basal (medicine), a minimal level that is nec ...

teleosts. The earliest known

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

actinopterygian is '' Andreolepis hedei'', dating back 420 million years (

Late Silurian The Silurian ( ) is a geologic period and system spanning 24.6 million years from the end of the Ordovician Period, at million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Devonian Period, Mya. The Silurian is the shortest period of the Paleozoi ...

), remains of which have been found in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

, Sweden, and

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and t ...

. Crown group actinopterygians most likely originated near the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary. The earliest fossil relatives of modern teleosts are from the

(''

Prohalecites ''Prohalecites'' is an extinct genus of ray-finned fish from the Ladinian and possibly Carnian (Triassic) of Italy. It is the oldest known teleosteomorph, a group that includes extant teleosts and their close fossil relatives. The type and on ...

'', ''

Pholidophorus ''Pholidophorus'' (from el, φολῐ́ς , 'horny scale' and el, φέρω , 'to bear') is an extinct genus of stem-teleost fish. Numerous species were assigned to this genus in the past, but only the type species ''Pholidophorus latiusculus'' ...

''), although it is suspected that teleosts originated already during the

Paleozoic The Paleozoic (or Palaeozoic) Era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. The name ''Paleozoic'' ( ;) was coined by the British geologist Adam Sedgwick in 1838 by combining the Greek words ''palaiós'' (, "old") and ' ...

Era An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth. Com ...

PalaeoniscusFreieslebenensis-NaturalHistoryMuseum-August23-08

Taxonomy

The listing below is a summary of all extinct (indicated by a

dagger A dagger is a fighting knife with a very sharp point and usually two sharp edges, typically designed or capable of being used as a thrusting or stabbing weapon.State v. Martin, 633 S.W.2d 80 (Mo. 1982): This is the dictionary or popular-use de ...

, †) and living groups of Actinopterygii with their respective

taxonomic rank In biological classification, taxonomic rank is the relative level of a group of organisms (a taxon) in an ancestral or hereditary hierarchy. A common system consists of species, genus, family, order, class, phylum, kingdom, domain. While ol ...

. The

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

follows Phylogenetic Classification of Bony Fishes with notes when this differs from Nelson,

ITIS The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) is an American partnership of federal agencies designed to provide consistent and reliable information on the taxonomy of biological species. ITIS was originally formed in 1996 as an interagenc ...

and

FishBase FishBase is a global species database of fish species (specifically finfish). It is the largest and most extensively accessed online database on adult finfish on the web.

and extinct groups from Van der Laan 2016 and Xu 2021. * Order †? Asarotiformes Schaeffer 1968 * Order †? Discordichthyiformes Minikh 1998 * Order †? Paphosisciformes Grogan & Lund 2015 * Order †? Scanilepiformes Selezneya 1985 * Order † Cheirolepidiformes Kazantseva-Selezneva 1977 * Order † Paramblypteriformes Heyler 1969 * Order † Rhadinichthyiformes * Order †

Palaeonisciformes The Palaeonisciformes (Palaeoniscida) are an extinct order of early ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii). Palaeonisciformes '' sensu lato'' first appeared in the fossil record in the Late Silurian and last appeared in the Late Cretaceous. The nam ...

Hay 1902 * Order †

Tarrasiiformes Tarasiiformes is an extinct order of prehistoric ray-finned fish. Taxonomy * Order †Tarrasiiformes sensu Lund & Poplin 2002 aplistiaref name="mikko"> ** Family †Tarrasiidae Traquair 1881 emend. Woodward 1891 *** Genus †'' Apholidotos'' L ...

sensu Lund & Poplin 2002 * Order †

Ptycholepiformes Ptycholepiformes are an extinct order of prehistoric ray-finned fish that existed during the Triassic period and the Early Jurassic epoch. The order includes the genera '' Acrorhabdus'', ''Ardoreosomus'', ''Boreosomus'', '' Chungkingichthys'', ...

Andrews et al. 1967 * Order † Haplolepidiformes Westoll 1944 * Order † Aeduelliformes Heyler 1969 * Order † Platysomiformes Aldinger 1937 * Order † Dorypteriformes Cope 1871 * Order † Eurynotiformes Sallan & Coates 2013 * Class

Pander 1860 ** Order †

Guildayichthyiformes Guildayichthyidae is a prehistoric family of marine fish from the Mississippian Bear Gulch Limestone of Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-d ...

Lund 2000 ** Order

Polypteriformes Bichirs and the reedfish comprise Polypteridae , a family of archaic ray-finned fishes and the only family in the order Polypteriformes .Helfman GS, Collette BB, Facey DE, Bowen BW. 2009. The Diversity of Fishes. West Sussex, UK: Blackwell Pu ...

Bleeker 1859 (

bichir Bichirs and the reedfish comprise Polypteridae , a family of archaic ray-finned fishes and the only family in the order Polypteriformes .Helfman GS, Collette BB, Facey DE, Bowen BW. 2009. The Diversity of Fishes. West Sussex, UK: Blackwell Pu ...

s and

reedfish The reedfish, ropefish (more commonly used in the United States), or snakefish, ''Erpetoichthys calabaricus'', is a species of fish in the bichir family and order. It is the only member of the genus ''Erpetoichthys''. It is native to fresh and ...

es) * Class

Cope 1972 s.s. ** Order † Elonichthyiformes Kazantseva-Selezneva 1977 ** Order † Phanerorhynchiformes ** Order †

Bobasatraniiformes Bobasatraniiformes is an extinct order of durophagous ray-finned fish that existed from the late Permian to the Middle Triassic in both marine and freshwater environments. The order includes two families: Bobasatraniidae, with the genera '' ...

Berg 1940 ** Order †

Saurichthyiformes Saurichthyiformes is an extinct order of ray-finned fish which existed in Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe and North America, during the late Permian to early Middle Jurassic. Saurichthyiiformes comprise two families, Saurichthyidae and Ye ...

Aldinger 1937 ** Subclass

Müller, 1844 *** Order † Birgeriiformes Heyler 1969 *** Order † Chondrosteiformes Aldinger, 1937 *** Order

Acipenseriformes Acipenseriformes is an order of basal ray-finned fishes that includes living and fossil sturgeons and paddlefishes (Acipenseroidei), as well as the extinct families Chondrosteidae and Peipiaosteidae. They are the second earliest diver ...

Berg 1940 (includes sturgeons and

paddlefish Paddlefish (family Polyodontidae) are a family of ray-finned fish belonging to order Acipenseriformes, and one of two living groups of the order alongside sturgeons (Acipenseridae). They are distinguished from other fish by their titular elongl ...

es) ** Subclass

Regan 1923 sensu Xu & Wu 2012 *** Order †

Pholidopleuriformes Pholidopleuriformes is an extinct order of ray-finned fish. Classification ** Family †Pholidopleuridae Abel 1919/Wade 1932 *** Genus †''Gracilignathichthys'' Bürgin 1992 **** †''Gracilignathichthys microlepis'' Bürgin 1992 *** Genus † ...

Berg 1937 ***Order †

Redfieldiiformes Redfieldiiformes is an extinct order of ray-finned fish (actinopterygians) which lived from the Middle Triassic to Early Jurassic. Redfieldiiforms were fairly typical Triassic fish in overall anatomy. They had a fusiform (streamlined, tuna-like) ...

Berg 1940 ***Order †

Platysiagiformes Platysiagidae is an extinct family of stem-neopterygian ray-finned fish which lived from the Early Triassic to the Early Jurassic. It includes the genera ''Helmolepis'', ''Platysiagum'' and possibly '' Caelatichthys''. The family was formerly ...

Brough 1939 ***Order † Polzbergiiformes Griffith 1977 ***Order †

Perleidiformes Perleidiformes are an extinct order of prehistoric ray-finned fish from the Triassic period Although numerous Triassic taxa have been referred to Perleidiformes, which ones should be included for it to form a monophyletic group is a matter of o ...

Berg 1937 ***Order † Louwoichthyiformes Xu 2021 *** Order † Peltopleuriformes Lehman 1966 *** Order † Luganoiiformes Lehman 1958 *** Order †

Pycnodontiformes Pycnodontiformes is an extinct order of primarily marine bony fish. The group first appeared during the Late Triassic and disappeared during the Eocene. The group has been found in rock formations in Africa, Asia, Europe, North and South Ameri ...

Berg 1937 *** Infraclass

Müller 1844 **** Division

Halecomorphi Halecomorphi is a taxon of ray-finned bony fish in the clade Neopterygii. The sole living Halecomorph is the bowfin (''Amia calva''), but the group contains many extinct species in several families (including Amiidae, Caturidae, Liodesmidae, ...

Cope 1872 sensu Grande & Bemis 1998 ***** Order †

Parasemionotiformes Parasemionotiformes is an extinct order of neopterygian ray-finned fish that existed globally during the Triassic period. It comprises the families Parasemionotidae and Promecosominidae. Many of the included genera are monotypic and most spec ...

Lehman 1966 ***** Order † Ionoscopiformes Grande & Bemis 1998 ***** Order

Amiiformes The Amiiformes order of fish has only one extant species, the bowfin (''Amia calva''). These Amiiformes are found in the freshwater systems of North America, in the United States and parts of southern Canada. They live in freshwater streams, riv ...

Huxley 1861 sensu Grande & Bemis 1998 (

bowfin The bowfin (''Amia calva'') is a bony fish, native to North America. Common names include mudfish, mud pike, dogfish, grindle, grinnel, swamp trout, and choupique. It is regarded as a relict, being the sole surviving species of the Halecomorp ...

s) **** Division

Ginglymodi Ginglymodi is a clade of ray-finned fish containing modern-day gars (Lepisosteidae) and their extinct relatives, including the family Lepidotidae and the orders Semionotiformes and Kyphosichthyiformes, and various other extinct taxa. Gingly ...

Cope 1871 ***** Order † Dapediiformes Thies & Waschkewitz 2015 ***** Order †

Semionotiformes Semionotiformes is an order of primitive, ray-finned, primarily freshwater fish from the Middle Triassic (Anisian) to the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian). The best-known genus is ''Semionotus'' of Europe and North America. Their closest living r ...

Arambourg & Bertin 1958 ***** Order Lepisosteiformes Hay 1929 (

gar Gars are members of the family Lepisosteidae, which are the only surviving members of the Ginglymodi, an ancient holosteian group of ray-finned fish, which first appeared during the Triassic, over 240 million years ago. Gars comprise seven livin ...

s) *** Clade Teleosteomorpha Arratia 2000 sensu Arratia 2013 **** Order † Prohaleciteiformes Arratia 2017 **** Division Aspidorhynchei Nelson, Grand & Wilson 2016 ***** Order †

Aspidorhynchiformes Aspidorhynchiformes (from New Latin "shield-snout forms") is an extinct order of ray-finned fish. It contains only a single family, the Aspidorhynchidae. Members of the group are noted for their elongated, conical rostrums, of varying length, fo ...

Bleeker 1859 ***** Order †

Pachycormiformes Pachycormiformes is an extinct order of marine ray-finned fish known from the Early Jurassic to the end of the Cretaceous. It only includes a single family, Pachycormidae. They were characterized by having serrated pectoral fins (though more rece ...

Berg 1937 **** Infraclass

Müller 1844 sensu Arratia 2013 ***** Order †?

Araripichthyiformes ''Araripichthys'' is an extinct genus of ray-finned fish that lived from the Aptian to Coniacian stages of the Cretaceous period. The genus is named after the Araripe Basin, where it was found in the Crato and Santana Formations. Other fossils ...

***** Order †? Ligulelliiformes Taverne 2011 ***** Order †? Tselfatiiformes Nelson 1994 ***** Order † Pholidophoriformes Berg 1940 ***** Order †

Dorsetichthyiformes ''Dorsetichthys'' is an extinct genus of stem- teleost ray-finned fish from the Early Jurassic period of Europe. Description ''Dorsetichthys'' was a herring-like fish about long, although it was not closely related to modern herring. Like them ...

Nelson, Grand & Wilson 2016 ***** Order †

Leptolepidiformes Leptolepidae (also spelt as Leptolepididae) is an extinct family of herring-like stem-teleost fish found throughout the world during the Jurassic. They were among the first fish to possess certain teleost synapomorphies, such as cycloid scale ...

***** Order † Crossognathiformes Taverne 1989 ***** Order †

Ichthyodectiformes Ichthyodectiformes is an extinct order of marine stem- teleost ray-finned fish. The order is named after the genus ''Ichthyodectes'', established by Edward Drinker Cope in 1870. Ichthyodectiforms are usually considered to be some of the closest ...

Bardeck & Sprinkle 1969 ***** Teleocephala de Pinna 1996 s.s. ******Megacohort Elopocephalai Patterson 1977 sensu Arratia 1999 (

Greenwood et al. 1966) ******* Order

Elopiformes The Elopiformes are the order of ray-finned fish including the tarpons, tenpounders, and ladyfish, as well as a number of extinct types. They have a long fossil record, easily distinguished from other fishes by the presence of an additional se ...

Gosline 1960 (

ladyfish The Elopidae are a family of ray-finned fish containing a single living genus ''Elops''. They are commonly known as ladyfish, skipjacks, jack-rashes, or tenpounders. The ladyfish are a coastal-dwelling fish found throughout the tropical and subt ...

es and

) ******* Order Albuliformes Greenwood et al. 1966 sensu Forey et al. 1996 (bonefishes) ******* Order

Notacanthiformes The Notacanthiformes are an order of deep-sea ray-finned fishes, consisting of the families Halosauridae and Notacanthidae ( spiny eels). The order is of relatively recent vintage; ''Fishes of the World'' (2006) lists it as the suborder Notacan ...

Goodrich 1909 ( halosaurs and

spiny eel The name spiny eel is used to describe members of two different families of fish: the freshwater Mastacembelidae of Asia and Africa, and the marine (and generally deep sea) Notacanthidae. Both are so-named because of their eel-like shape and sturdy ...

s) ******* Order

Anguilliformes Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 19 families, 111 genera, and about 800 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult sta ...

Jarocki 1822 sensu Goodrich 1909 (true

s) ****** Megacohort Osteoglossocephalai sensu Arratia 1999 *******Supercohort Osteoglossocephala sensu Arratia 1999 (

Osteoglossomorpha Osteoglossomorpha is a group of bony fish in the Teleostei. Notable members A notable member is the arapaima (''Arapaima gigas''), the largest freshwater fish in South America and one of the largest bony fishes alive. Other notable members inclu ...

Greenwood et al. 1966) ******** Order † Lycopteriformes Chang & Chou 1977 ******** Order

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 authori ...

McAllister 1968 sensu Taverne 1979 (

mooneye Hiodontidae, commonly called mooneyes, is a family of ray-finned fish with a single included genus ''Hiodon''. The genus comprise two living species native to North America and three to five extinct species recorded from Paleocene to Eocene age ...

and

goldeye The goldeye (''Hiodon alosoides'') is a freshwater fish found in Canada and the northern United States. It is one of only two extant species in the family Hiodontidae, the other species being '' Hiodon tergisus''. The species name ''alosoides' ...

) ******** Order

Osteoglossiformes Osteoglossiformes (Greek: "bony tongues") 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 Sout ...

Regan 1909 sensu Zhang 2004 (bony-tongued fishes) ******* Supercohort Clupeocephala Patterson & Rosen 1977 sensu Arratia 2010 ********Cohort Otomorpha Wiley & Johnson 2010 (

Otocephala Otocephala is a clade of ray-finned fishes within the infraclass Teleostei that evolved some 230 million years ago. It is named for the presence of a hearing (otophysic) link from the swimbladder to the inner ear. Other names proposed for the gro ...

; Ostarioclupeomorpha) ********* Subcohort Clupei Wiley & Johnson 2010 ( Clupeomorpha Greenwood et al. 1966) ********** Order † Ellimmichthyiformes Grande 1982 ********** Order

Clupeiformes Clupeiformes is the order of ray-finned fish that includes the herring family, Clupeidae, and the anchovy family, Engraulidae. The group includes many of the most important forage and food fish. Clupeiformes are physostomes, which means that ...

Bleeker 1859 (

herring Herring are forage fish, mostly belonging to the family of Clupeidae. Herring often move in large schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and North Atlantic Ocea ...

s and

anchovies An anchovy is a small, common forage fish of the family Engraulidae. Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water, and some in South America are restricted to fresh water. More than 140 species are placed in 1 ...

) ********* Subcohort Alepocephali ********** Order

Alepocephaliformes Alepocephaliformes is an order of ray-finned fish. It was previously classified as the suborder Alepocephaloidei of the order Argentiniformes. Subdivisions * Family Alepocephalidae (typical slickheads) (includes former families Bathylaconidae ...

Marshall 1962 ********* Subcohort

Ostariophysi Ostariophysi is the second-largest superorder of fish. Members of this superorder are called ostariophysians. This diverse group contains 10,758 species, about 28% of known fish species in the world and 68% of freshwater species, and are present ...

Sagemehl 1885 ********** Section Anotophysa (Rosen & Greenwood 1970) Sagemehl 1885 *********** Order † Sorbininardiformes Taverne 1999 *********** Order

Gonorynchiformes The Gonorynchiformes are an order of ray-finned fish that includes the important food source, the milkfish (''Chanos chanos'', family Chanidae), and a number of lesser-known types, both marine and freshwater. The alternate spelling "Gonorhynch ...

Regan 1909 (

milkfish The milkfish (''Chanos chanos'') is the sole living species in the family Chanidae. However, there are at least five extinct genera from the Cretaceous. The repeating scientific name ( tautonym) is from Greek ( ‘mouth’). The species has ma ...

es) ********** Section Otophysa Garstang 1931 *********** Order

Cypriniformes Cypriniformes is an order of ray-finned fish, including the carps, minnows, loaches, and relatives. Cypriniformes is an Order within the Superorder Ostariophysi consisting of "Carp-like" Ostariophysins. This order contains 11-12 familie ...

Bleeker 1859 sensu Goodrich 1909 ( barbs,

carp Carp are various species of oily freshwater fish from the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. While carp is consumed in many parts of the world, they are generally considered an invasive species in parts of ...

danios ''Danio'' is a genus of small freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae found in South and Southeast Asia, commonly kept in aquaria. They are generally characterised by a pattern of horizontal stripes, rows of spots or vertical bars. Some specie ...

goldfish The goldfish (''Carassius auratus'') is a freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae of order Cypriniformes. It is commonly kept as a pet in indoor aquariums, and is one of the most popular aquarium fish. Goldfish released into the wild have b ...

es,

loaches Loaches are fish of the superfamily Cobitoidea. They are freshwater, benthic (bottom-dwelling) fish found in rivers and creeks throughout Eurasia and northern Africa. Loaches are among the most diverse groups of fish; the 1249 known species of C ...

minnow Minnow is the common name for a number of species of small freshwater fish, belonging to several genera of the families Cyprinidae and Leuciscidae. They are also known in Ireland as pinkeens. Smaller fish in the subfamily Leusciscidae are ...

rasbora ''Rasbora'' is a genus of fish in the family Cyprinidae. They are native to freshwater habitats in South and specimen that reputedly originated from Africa (Cameroon), but this locality is considered doubtful. They are small, up to long, altho ...

s) *********** Order

Characiformes Characiformes is an order of ray-finned fish, comprising the characins and their allies. Grouped in 18 recognized families, more than 2000 different species are described, including the well-known piranha and tetras.; Buckup P.A.: "Relationshi ...

Goodrich 1909 (

characin Characiformes is an order of ray-finned fish, comprising the characins and their allies. Grouped in 18 recognized families, more than 2000 different species are described, including the well-known piranha and tetras.; Buckup P.A.: "Relationsh ...

pencilfish ''Nannostomus'', (from the Greek: ''nanos'' = small, and the Latin: ''stomus'' = relating to the mouth), is a genus of fish belonging to the characin family Lebiasinidae. All of the species in this genus are known as pencil fish or pencilfish, ...

es, hatchetfishes,

piranha A piranha or piraña (, , or ; or , ) is one of a number of freshwater fish in the family Serrasalmidae, or the subfamily Serrasalminae within the tetra family, Characidae in order Characiformes. These fish inhabit South American rivers, ...

tetra Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA; formerly known as Trans-European Trunked Radio), a European standard for a trunked radio system, is a professional mobile radio and two-way transceiver specification. TETRA was specifically designed for use by ...

s, dourado / golden (genus ''Salminus'') and

pacu Pacu () is a common name used to refer to several species of omnivorous South American freshwater serrasalmid fish that are related to the piranha. Pacu and piranha do not have similar teeth, the main difference being jaw alignment; piranha ha ...

) *********** Order

Gymnotiformes The Gymnotiformes are an order of teleost bony fishes commonly known as Neotropical knifefish or South American knifefish. They have long bodies and swim using undulations of their elongated anal fin. Found almost exclusively in fresh water (the ...

Berg 1940 (

electric eel The electric eels are a genus, ''Electrophorus'', of neotropical freshwater fish from South America in the family Gymnotidae. They are known for their ability to stun their prey by generating electricity, delivering shocks at up to 860 vo ...

s and knifefishes) *********** Order

Siluriformes Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, ...

Cuvier 1817 sensu Hay 1929 (

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, ...

es) ******** Cohort Euteleosteomorpha (Greenwood et al. 1966) (

Euteleostei Euteleostei, whose members are known as euteleosts, is a clade of bony fishes within Teleostei that evolved some 240 million years ago. It is divided into Protacanthopterygii (including the salmon and dragonfish) and Neoteleostei (including th ...

Greenwood 1967 sensu Johnson & Patterson 1996) *********Subcohort Lepidogalaxii ********** Lepidogalaxiiformes Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 ( salamanderfish) ********* Subcohort

Protacanthopterygii Protacanthopterygii is a ray-finned fish taxon ranked as a superorder of the infraclass Teleostei. They inhabit both marine and freshwater habitats. They appear to have evolved in the Cretaceous or perhaps late Jurassic, originating probably rou ...

Greenwood et al. 1966 sensu Johnson & Patterson 1996 ********** Order

Argentiniformes The Argentiniformes are an order of ray-finned fish whose distinctness was recognized only fairly recently. In former times, they were included in the Osmeriformes (typical smelt and allies) as suborder Argentinoidei. That term refers only to t ...

(

barreleye Barreleyes, also known as spook fish (a name also applied to several species of chimaera), are small deep-sea argentiniform fish comprising the family Opisthoproctidae found in tropical-to-temperate waters of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian ...

s and slickheads) (formerly in Osmeriformes) ********** Order Galaxiiformes ********** Order

Salmoniformes Salmonidae is a family of ray-finned fish that constitutes the only currently extant family in the order Salmoniformes . It includes salmon (both Atlantic and Pacific species), trout (both ocean-going and landlocked), chars, freshwater whitefish ...

Bleeker 1859 sensu Nelson 1994 (

salmon Salmon () is the common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of ...

and

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-sa ...

) ********** Order

Esociformes The Esociformes () are a small order of ray-finned fish, with two families, Umbridae and Esocidae. The pikes of genus ''Esox'' give the order its name. This order is closely related to the Salmoniformes, the two comprising the superorder ...

Bleeker 1859 (

pike Pike, Pikes or The Pike may refer to: Fish * Blue pike or blue walleye, an extinct color morph of the yellow walleye ''Sander vitreus'' * Ctenoluciidae, the "pike characins", some species of which are commonly known as pikes * ''Esox'', genus o ...

) ********* Subcohort Stomiati ********** Order

Osmeriformes The Osmeriformes are an order (biology), order of ray-finned fish that includes the true or freshwater smelts and allies, such as the galaxiids and noodlefishes; they are also collectively called osmeriforms. They belong to the teleost superorder ...

(

smelts Smelts are a family of small fish, the Osmeridae, found in the North Atlantic and North Pacific Oceans, as well as rivers, streams and lakes in Europe, North America and Northeast Asia. They are also known as freshwater smelts or typical smelts ...

) ********** Order Stomiatiformes Regan 1909 (

bristlemouth The Gonostomatidae are a family of mesopelagic marine fish, commonly named bristlemouths, lightfishes, or anglemouths. It is a relatively small family, containing only eight known genera and 32 species. However, bristlemouths make up for their l ...

s and

marine hatchetfish Marine hatchetfishes or deep-sea hatchetfishes are small deep-sea mesopelagic ray-finned fish of the stomiiform subfamily Sternoptychinae. They should not be confused with the freshwater hatchetfishes, which are not particularly closely related ...

es) ********* Subcohort

Neoteleostei The Neoteleostei is a large clade of bony fish that includes the Ateleopodidae (jellynoses), Aulopiformes (lizardfish), Myctophiformes (lanternfish), Polymixiiformes (beardfish), Percopsiformes (Troutperches), Gadiformes (cods), Zeiformes (do ...

Nelson 1969 **********Infracohort Ateleopodia *********** Order Ateleopodiformes (

jellynose fish The jellynose fishes or tadpole fishes are the small order Ateleopodiformes. This group of ray-finned fish is monotypic, containing a single family Ateleopodidae. It has about a dozen species in four genera, but these enigmatic fishes are in nee ...

) ********** Infracohort Eurypterygia Rosen 1973 ***********Section Aulopa yclosquamata Rosen 1973************ Order

Aulopiformes Aulopiformes is a diverse order of marine ray-finned fish consisting of some 15 extant and several prehistoric families with about 45 genera and over 230 species. The common names grinners, lizardfishes and allies, or aulopiforms are sometimes ...

Rosen 1973 ( Bombay duck and

lancetfish Lancetfishes are large oceanic predatory fishes in the genus ''Alepisaurus'' ("scaleless lizard") in the monogeneric family Alepisauridae. Lancetfishes grow up to in length. Very little is known about their biology, though they are widely di ...

es) *********** Section Ctenosquamata Rosen 1973 ************Subsection Myctophata copelomorpha************* Order

Myctophiformes The Myctophiformes are an order of ray-finned fishes consisting of two families of deep-sea marine fish, most notably the highly abundant lanternfishes (Myctophidae). The blackchins (Neoscopelidae) contain six species in three genera, while the ...

Regan 1911 (

lanternfish Lanternfishes (or myctophids, from the Greek μυκτήρ ''myktḗr'', "nose" and ''ophis'', "serpent") are small mesopelagic fish of the large family Myctophidae. One of two families in the order Myctophiformes, the Myctophidae are represented ...

es) ************ Subsection

Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 *************Division Lampridacea Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 ampridomorpha; Lampripterygii************** Order

Lampriformes Lampriformes is an order of ray-finned fish. Members are collectively called lamprids (which is more properly used for the Lampridae) or lampriforms, and unite such open-ocean and partially deep-sea Teleostei as the crestfishes, oarfish, opahs ...

Regan 1909 (

opah Opahs, also commonly known as moonfish, sunfish (not to be confused with Molidae), kingfish, redfin ocean pan are large, colorful, deep-bodied pelagic lampriform fishes comprising the small family Lampridae (also spelled Lamprididae). The fam ...

and ribbonfishes) ************* Division Paracanthomorphacea sensu Grande et al. 2013 (

Paracanthopterygii Paracanthopterygii is a superorder of fishes. Members of this group are called paracanthopterygians. It includes five orders: * † Sphenocephaliformes * Percopsiformes (trout-perches & allies) * Zeiformes ( dories) * Stylephoriformes ( Tube- ...

Greenwood 1937) ************** Order

Percopsiformes The Percopsiformes are a small order of ray-finned fishes, comprising the trout-perch and its allies. It contains just ten extant species, grouped into seven genera and three families. Five of these genera are monotypic They are generally sm ...

Berg 1937 ( cavefishes and

trout-perch ''Percopsis omiscomaycus'', also known as the trout-perch, the grounder or the sand minnow, is one of two species in the family Percopsidae. Its name comes from the Greek root words ''perc'', meaning perch and ''opsi'' meaning appearance. The sp ...

es) ************** Order † Sphenocephaliformes Rosen & Patterson 1969 ************** Order

Zeiformes The Zeiformes are a small order of marine ray-finned fishes most notable for the dories, a group of common food fish. The order consists of about 33 species in seven families, mostly deep-sea types. Zeiform bodies are usually thin and deep. Mou ...

Regan 1909 (

dories A dory is a small, shallow-draft boat, about long. It is usually a lightweight boat with high sides, a flat bottom and sharp bows. It is easy to build because of its simple lines. For centuries, the dory has been used as a traditional fishin ...

) ************** Order

Stylephoriformes ''Stylephorus chordatus'', the tube-eye or thread-tail, is a deep-sea fish, the only fish in the genus ''Stylephorus'' and family Stylephoridae. It is found in deep subtropical and tropical waters around the world, living at depths during the da ...

Miya et al. 2007 ************** Order

Gadiformes Gadiformes are an order of ray-finned fish, also called the Anacanthini, that includes the cod. Many major food fish are in this order. They are found in marine waters throughout the world and the vast majority of the species are found in tempe ...

Goodrich 1909 (

cod Cod is the common name for the demersal fish genus '' Gadus'', belonging to the family Gadidae. Cod is also used as part of the common name for a number of other fish species, and one species that belongs to genus ''Gadus'' is commonly not c ...

s) ************* Division Polymixiacea Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 (Polymyxiomorpha; Polymixiipterygii) ************** Order † Pattersonichthyiformes Gaudant 1976 ************** Order †

Ctenothrissiformes Ctenothrissiformes is an extinct order of prehistoric Actinopterygii, ray-finned fish. Timeline of genera ImageSize = width:1000px height:auto barincrement:15px PlotArea = left:10px bottom:50px top:10px right:10px Period = from:-145.5 ...

Berg 1937 ************** Order

Polymixiiformes The beardfishes consist of a single extant genus, '' Polymixia'', of deep-sea marine ray-finned fish named for their pair of long hyoid barbels. They are classified in their own order Polymixiiformes . But as Nelson says, "few groups have been s ...

Lowe 1838 (

beardfish The beardfishes consist of a single extant genus, ''Polymixia'', of deep-sea marine ray-finned fish named for their pair of long hyoid barbels. They are classified in their own order Polymixiiformes . But as Nelson says, "few groups have been sh ...

es) ************* Division Euacanthomorphacea Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 (Euacanthomorpha sensu Johnson & Patterson 1993;

Acanthopterygii Acanthopterygii (meaning "spiny finned one") is a superorder of bony fishes in the class Actinopterygii. Members of this superorder are sometimes called ray-finned fishes for the characteristic sharp, bony rays in their fins; however this name i ...

Gouan 1770 sensu]) **************Subdivision Berycimorphaceae Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 *************** Order

Beryciformes The Beryciformes are a poorly-understood order of carnivorous ray-finned fishes consisting of 7 families, 30 genera, and 161 species. They feed on small fish and invertebrates. Beyond this, little is known about the biology of most member specie ...

(

fangtooth Fangtooths are beryciform fish of the family Anoplogastridae (sometimes spelled "Anoplogasteridae") that live in the deep sea. The name is from the Greek , meaning "unarmed", and (), meaning "stomach". With a circumglobal distribution in trop ...

s and

pineconefish Pinecone fishes are small and unusual marine fish of the family ''Monocentridae''. The family contains just four species in two genera, one of which is monotypic. Their distribution is limited to tropical and subtropical waters of the Indo-P ...

es) (incl.

Stephanoberyciformes The Stephanoberyciformes are an order of marine ray-finned fishes, consisting of about 68 species, the majority (61) of which belong to the ridgehead family (Melamphaidae). The Stephanoberyciformes are mostly uncommon deep-sea species with little ...

;

Cetomimiformes The Cetomimiformes or whalefishes are an order of small, deep-sea ray-finned fish. Some authoritiesE.g. Nelson (2006) include the whalefishes as part of the order Stephanoberyciformes, within the superfamily Cetomimoidea. Their sister order, the ...

) ************** Subdivision Holocentrimorphaceae Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 *************** Order Holocentriformes ( Soldierfishes) ************** Subdivision Percomorphaceae Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 (

Percomorpha Percomorpha () is a large clade of ray-finned fish that includes the tuna, seahorses, gobies, cichlids, flatfish, wrasse, perches, anglerfish, and pufferfish. Evolution Percomorpha are the most diverse group of teleost fish today. Teleosts, a ...

sensu Miya et al. 2003;

Acanthopteri Perciformes (), also called the Percomorpha or Acanthopteri, is an order or superorder of ray-finned fish. If considered a single order, they are the most numerous order of vertebrates, containing about 41% of all bony fish. Perciformes means ...

) ***************Series Ophidiimopharia Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 **************** Order

Ophidiiformes Ophidiiformes is an order of ray-finned fish that includes the cusk-eels (family Ophidiidae), pearlfishes (family Carapidae), viviparous brotulas (family Bythitidae), and others. Members of this order have small heads and long slender bodies. ...

(

pearlfish Pearlfish are marine fish in the ray-finned fish family Carapidae. Pearlfishes inhabit the tropical waters of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans at depths to , along oceanic shelves and slopes. They are slender, elongated fish with no s ...

es) *************** Series Batrachoidimopharia Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 **************** Order Batrachoidiformes ( toadfishes) *************** Series Gobiomopharia Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 **************** Order

Kurtiformes The Kurtiformes consist of two extant families of ray-finned fish, the Indo-Pacific Kurtidae (consisting solely of two species in the genus '' Kurtus'') and the much more diverse and widespread Apogonidae (the cardinalfishes). The order is part ...

(

Nurseryfish ''Kurtus'' is a genus of percomorph fishes, called the nurseryfishes, forehead brooders, or incubator fish, native to fresh, brackish and coastal marine waters ranging from India, through southeast Asia to New Guinea and northern Australia. ''Ku ...

es and

cardinalfish Cardinalfishes are a family, Apogonidae, of ray-finned fishes found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans; they are chiefly marine, but some species are found in brackish water and a few (notably '' Glossamia'') are found in fresh water. A ...

es) **************** Order

Gobiiformes The Gobiiformes are an order of fish that includes the gobies and their relatives. The order, which was previously considered a suborder of Perciformes, is made up of about 2,211 species that are divided between seven families. Phylogenetic re ...

(Sleepers and

gobies Gobiidae or gobies is a family of bony fish in the order Gobiiformes, one of the largest fish families comprising more than 2,000 species in more than 200 genera. Most of gobiid fish are relatively small, typically less than in length, and th ...

) *************** Series Scombrimopharia Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 **************** Order

Syngnathiformes The Syngnathiformes are an order of ray-finned fishes that includes the trumpetfishes and seahorses.FishBase (2005)Order Summary for Syngnathiformes Version of 2005-FEB-15. Retrieved 19 Aug 2008. These fishes have elongated, narrow, bodies sur ...

(

seahorses A seahorse (also written ''sea-horse'' and ''sea horse'') is any of 46 species of small marine fish in the genus ''Hippocampus''. "Hippocampus" comes from the Ancient Greek (), itself from () meaning "horse" and () meaning "sea monster" o ...

pipefish Pipefishes or pipe-fishes (Syngnathinae) are a subfamily of small fishes, which, together with the seahorses and seadragons ('' Phycodurus'' and '' Phyllopteryx''), form the family Syngnathidae. Description Pipefish look like straight-bodied se ...

es, sea moths,

cornetfish The cornetfishes or flutemouths are a small family, the Fistulariidae, of extremely elongated fishes in the order Syngnathiformes. The family consists of a single genus, ''Fistularia'', with four species, found worldwide in tropical and subtropic ...

es and flying gurnardsIn Nelson and ITIS,

is placed as the suborder Syngnathoidei of the order

Gasterosteiformes Gasterosteoidei is a suborder of ray-finned fishes that includes the sticklebacks and relatives, the 5th edition of ''Fishes of the World'' classifies this suborder within the order Scorpaeniformes. Systematics Gasterosteoidei is treated as a s ...

.) **************** Order

Scombriformes Scombriformes is an order of bony fish containing nine families which were classified under the suborders Scombroidei and Stromateoidei, of the wider grouping known as Perciformes, ''Fishes of the World'', 5th ed. (2016), recognised the order b ...

(

Tuna A tuna is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae ( mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bullet tuna (max le ...

s and (

mackerel Mackerel is a common name applied to a number of different species of pelagic fish, mostly from the family Scombridae. They are found in both temperate and tropical seas, mostly living along the coast or offshore in the oceanic environment. ...

s) *************** Series Carangimopharia Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 **************** Subseries Anabantaria Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2014 ***************** Order

Synbranchiformes Synbranchiformes, often called swamp eels, is an order of ray-finned fishes that are eel-like but have spiny rays, indicating that they belong to the superorder Acanthopterygii. Taxonomy No synbrachiform fossil is known. The Mastacembeloidei were ...

(

swamp eel The swamp eels (also written "swamp-eels") are a family (Synbranchidae) of freshwater eel-like fishes of the tropics and subtropics. Most species are able to breathe air and typically live in marshes, ponds and damp places, sometimes burying t ...

s) ***************** Order

Anabantiformes The Anabantiformes , collectively known as Labyrinth fish. are an order of air-breathing freshwater ray-finned fish with two suborders, five families (Channidae, Aenigmachannidae, Anabantidae, Helostomatidae, and Osphronemidae) and having a ...

(Labyrinthici) (

gourami Gouramis, or gouramies , are a group of freshwater anabantiform fishes that comprise the family Osphronemidae. The fish are native to Asia—from the Indian Subcontinent to Southeast Asia and northeasterly towards Korea. The name "gourami", of ...

es, snakeheads, ) **************** Subseries Carangaria Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2014 ***************** Carangaria incertae sedis ***************** Order

Istiophoriformes Istiophoriformes are an order of bony fish which is not fully recognized by some taxonomists, with some including the two extant families Xiphiidae and Istiophoridae, and others including the family Sphyraenidae. Families The following familie ...

Betancur-Rodriguez 2013 (

Marlin Marlins are fish from the family Istiophoridae, which includes about 10 species. A marlin has an elongated body, a spear-like snout or bill, and a long, rigid dorsal fin which extends forward to form a crest. Its common name is thought to der ...

s, swordfishes,

billfish The term billfish refers to a group of saltwater predatory fish characterised by prominent pointed bills (rostra), and by their large size; some are longer than . Extant billfish include sailfish and marlin, which make up the family Istio ...

es) ***************** Order

Carangiformes Carangiformes is an order of the ray-finned fishes. The order is part of a clade which is a sister clade to the Ovalentaria, the other orders in the clade being Synbranchiformes, Anabantiformes, Istiophoriformes and Pleuronectiformes. The Car ...

(

Jack mackerel Jack mackerels or saurels are marine fish in the genus ''Trachurus'' of the family Carangidae. The name of the genus derives from the Greek words ''trachys'' ("rough") and ''oura'' ("tail"). Some species, such as ''T. murphyi'', are harvested in ...

pompano Pompanos ( ) are marine fishes in the genus ''Trachinotus'' in the family Carangidae (better known as "jacks"). Pompano may also refer to various other, similarly shaped members of the Carangidae, or the order Perciformes. Their appearance is o ...

s) ***************** Order

Pleuronectiformes A flatfish is a member of the ray-finned demersal fish order Pleuronectiformes, also called the Heterosomata, sometimes classified as a suborder of Perciformes. In many species, both eyes lie on one side of the head, one or the other migrating ...

Bleeker 1859 (

flatfish A flatfish is a member of the ray-finned demersal fish order Pleuronectiformes, also called the Heterosomata, sometimes classified as a suborder of Perciformes. In many species, both eyes lie on one side of the head, one or the other migratin ...

es) **************** Subseries Ovalentaria Smith & Near 2012 (

Stiassnyiformes Stiassnyiformes is an order of bony fish (Teleostei) proposed in 2009.Blaise Li, Agnès Dettaï, Corinne Cruaud, Arnaud Couloux, Martine Desoutter-Meniger, Guillaume Lecointre: ''RNF213, a new nuclear marker for acanthomorph phylogeny.'' Molecula ...

sensu Li et al. 2009) ***************** Ovalentaria incertae sedis ***************** Order

Cichliformes Cichliformes is an order of fishes. Its members were previously classified under the order Perciformes, but now many authorities consider it to be an independent order within the subseries Ovalentaria. Families There are two families within th ...

Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013 (

Cichlid Cichlids are fish from the family Cichlidae in the order Cichliformes. Cichlids were traditionally classed in a suborder, the Labroidei, along with the wrasses ( Labridae), in the order Perciformes, but molecular studies have contradicted th ...

Convict blenny ''Pholidichthys leucotaenia'', commonly known as the convict blenny/goby or the engineer blenny/goby, is a marine fish from the west-central Pacific Ocean. Despite its common names, it is neither a blenny nor a goby, but is in fact one of two spe ...

, leaf fishes) ***************** Order

Atheriniformes The Atheriniformes, also known as the silversides, are an order of ray-finned fishes that includes the Old World silversides and several less-familiar families, including the unusual Phallostethidae. The order includes at least 354 species. The ...

Rosen 1964 ( silversides and

rainbowfish The rainbowfish or Melanotaeniidae is a family of small, colourful freshwater fish found in northern and eastern Australia, New Guinea (including islands in Cenderawasih Bay and Raja Ampat Islands in Indonesia), Sulawesi and Madagascar. The l ...

es) ***************** Order

Cyprinodontiformes Cyprinodontiformes is an order of ray-finned fish, comprising mostly small, freshwater fish. Many popular aquarium fish, such as killifish and live-bearers, are included. They are closely related to the Atheriniformes and are occasionally in ...

Berg 1940 (

livebearers Livebearers are aquarium fish that retain the eggs inside the body and give birth to live, free-swimming young. Among aquarium fish, livebearers are nearly all members of the family Poeciliidae and include guppies, mollies, platies and swordtails ...

killifish A killifish is any of various oviparous (egg-laying) cyprinodontiform fish (including families Aplocheilidae, Cyprinodontidae, Fundulidae, Profundulidae and Valenciidae). All together, there are 1,270 species of killifish, the biggest famil ...

es) ***************** Order

Beloniformes Beloniformes is an order composed of six families (and about 264 species) of freshwater and marine ray-finned fish: * Adrianichthyidae (ricefish and medakas) * Belonidae (needlefish) * Exocoetidae (flyingfishes) * Hemiramphidae (halfbeaks ...

Berg 1940 (

flyingfish The Exocoetidae are a family of marine fish in the order Beloniformes class Actinopterygii, known colloquially as flying fish or flying cod. About 64 species are grouped in seven to nine genera. While they cannot fly in the same way a bird d ...

es and

ricefish The ricefishes are a family (Adrianichthyidae) of small ray-finned fish that are found in fresh and brackish waters from India to Japan and out into the Malay Archipelago, most notably Sulawesi (where the Lake Poso and Lore Lindu species are kn ...

es) ***************** Order

Mugiliformes The mullets or grey mullets are a family (Mugilidae) of ray-finned fish found worldwide in coastal temperate and tropical waters, and some species in fresh water. Mullets have served as an important source of food in Mediterranean Europe since R ...

Berg 1940 ( mullets) ***************** Order

Blenniiformes Blenny (from the Greek and , mucus, slime) is a common name for many types of fish, including several families of percomorph marine, brackish, and some freshwater fish sharing similar morphology and behaviour. Six families are considered "tru ...

Springer 1993 (

Blennies Blenny (from the Greek and , mucus, slime) is a common name for many types of fish, including several families of percomorph marine, brackish, and some freshwater fish sharing similar morphology and behaviour. Six families are considered "true ...

) ***************** Order

Gobiesociformes Clingfishes are fishes of the family Gobiesocidae, the only family in the order Gobiesociformes. These fairly small to very small fishes are widespread in tropical and temperate regions, mostly near the coast, but a few species in deeper seas o ...

Gill 1872 (

Clingfish Clingfishes are fishes of the family Gobiesocidae, the only family in the order Gobiesociformes. These fairly small to very small fishes are widespread in tropical and temperate regions, mostly near the coast, but a few species in deeper seas or ...

es) *************** Series Eupercaria Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2014 (Percomorpharia Betancur-Rodriguez et al. 2013) ****************

Eupercaria incertae sedis Percomorpha () is a large clade of ray-finned fish that includes the Scombroidei, tuna, Syngnathiformes, seahorses, gobies, Cichlidae, cichlids, flatfish, Labridae, wrasse, Perciformes, perches, Lophiiformes, anglerfish, and Tetraodontiformes, pu ...

**************** Order Gerreiformes (

Mojarra The mojarras are a family, Gerreidae, of fish in the order Perciformes. The family includes about 53 species found worldwide in tropical and warm temperate regions. They mostly inhabit coastal salt and brackish waters, although some occur in fre ...

s) **************** Order Labriformes (

Wrasse The wrasses are a family, Labridae, of marine fish, many of which are brightly colored. The family is large and diverse, with over 600 species in 81 genera, which are divided into 9 subgroups or tribes. They are typically small, most of them ...

s and

Parrotfish Parrotfishes are a group of about 90 fish species regarded as a family (Scaridae), or a subfamily (Scarinae) of the wrasses. With about 95 species, this group's largest species richness is in the Indo-Pacific. They are found in coral reefs, ...

es) **************** Order Caproiformes ( Boarfishes) **************** Order

Lophiiformes The anglerfish are fish of the teleost order Lophiiformes (). They are bony fish named for their characteristic mode of predation, in which a modified luminescent fin ray (the esca or illicium) acts as a lure for other fish. The luminescence c ...

Garman 1899 (

Anglerfish The anglerfish are fish of the teleost order Lophiiformes (). They are bony fish named for their characteristic mode of predation, in which a modified luminescent fin ray (the esca or illicium) acts as a lure for other fish. The luminescence ...

es) **************** Order

Tetraodontiformes The Tetraodontiformes are an order of highly derived ray-finned fish, also called the Plectognathi. Sometimes these are classified as a suborder of the order Perciformes. The Tetraodontiformes are represented by 10 extant families and at least ...

Regan 1929 (

Filefish The filefish (Monacanthidae) are a diverse family of tropical to subtropical tetraodontiform marine fish, which are also known as foolfish, leatherjackets or shingles. They live in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Filefish are closely ...

es and

pufferfish Tetraodontidae is a family of primarily marine and estuarine fish of the order Tetraodontiformes. The family includes many familiar species variously called pufferfish, puffers, balloonfish, blowfish, blowies, bubblefish, globefish, swellfi ...

) **************** Order

Centrarchiformes Centrarchiformes is an obsolete order of ray-finned fish, now included amongst the perciformes, with 17 previously included families. This order first appeared about 55.8 million years ago in the Eocene Era, and is composed primarily of omnivore ...

Bleeker 1859 ( Sunfishes and mandarin fishes) ****************Order

(

Stickleback The sticklebacks are a family of ray-finned fishes, the Gasterosteidae which have a Holarctic distribution in fresh, brackish and marine waters. They were thought to be related to the pipefish and seahorses but are now thought to be more clos ...

s and relatives) ****************Order

Scorpaeniformes The Scorpaeniformes are a diverse order of ray-finned fish, including the lionfishes and sculpins, but have also been called the Scleroparei. It is one of the five largest orders of bony fishes by number of species, with over 1,320. They are k ...

(

Lionfishes ''Pterois'' is a genus of venomous marine fish, commonly known as lionfish, native to the Indo-Pacific. Also called firefish, turkeyfish, tastyfish, or butterfly-cod, it is characterized by conspicuous warning coloration with red, white, crea ...

and relatives) **************** Order

Perciformes Perciformes (), also called the Percomorpha or Acanthopteri, is an order or superorder of ray-finned fish. If considered a single order, they are the most numerous order of vertebrates, containing about 41% of all bony fish. Perciformes means ...

Bleeker 1859

References

External links

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Ray-finned fishes Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. They comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. The ray-finned fishes are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or hor ...

Fish classes Silurian bony fish Extant Silurian first appearances