Acanthopterygii
Encyclopedia
Acanthopterygii is a superorder of bony fishes in the class Actinopterygii
. Members of this superorder are also known as the ray-finned fishes for the characteristic sharp, bony rays in their fins; however this name is also often given to the class Actinopterygii as a whole.
Orders:
Actinopterygii
The Actinopterygii or ray-finned fishes constitute a class or sub-class of the bony fishes.The ray-finned fishes are so called because they possess lepidotrichia or "fin rays", their fins being webs of skin supported by bony or horny spines , as opposed to the fleshy, lobed fins that characterize...
. Members of this superorder are also known as the ray-finned fishes for the characteristic sharp, bony rays in their fins; however this name is also often given to the class Actinopterygii as a whole.
Orders:
- Order Mugiliformes, the mulletsMullet (fish)The mullets or grey mullets are a family and order of ray-finned fish found worldwide in coastal temperate and tropical waters, and in some species in fresh water. Mullets have served as an important source of food in Mediterranean Europe since Roman times...
- Order AtheriniformesAtheriniformesAtheriniformes, also known as the silversides, is an order of ray-finned fish that includes the Old World silversides and several less-familiar families, including the unusual Phallostethidae...
, including silversides and rainbowfishRainbowfishThe rainbowfish are a family of small, colourful, freshwater fish that are found in northern and eastern Australia and New Guinea and in the Southeast Asian islands....
es - Order BeloniformesBeloniformesThe Beloniformes are an order of five families of freshwater and marine ray-finned fish: the Adrianichthyidae ; Belonidae ; Exocoetidae ; Hemiramphidae ; and the Scomberesocidae...
, including the flyingfishFlyingfishExocoetidae, is a family of marine fish in the order Beloniformes of class Actinopterygii. Fish of this family are known as flying fish. There are about 64 species grouped in seven to nine genera.- Etymology :...
es - Order CetomimiformesCetomimiformesThe Cetomimiformes or whalefishes are an order of small, deep-sea ray-finned fish. Some authorities include the whalefishes as part of the order Stephanoberyciformes, within the superfamily Cetomimoidea. Their sister order, the Beryciformes, includes the flashlight fish and squirrelfish.Within this...
, the whalefishes - Order CyprinodontiformesCyprinodontiformesThe Cyprinodontiformes is an order of ray-finned fish, comprising mostly small, fresh-water fish. Many popular aquarium fish, such as killifish and live-bearers, are included. They are closely related to the Atheriniformes and are occasionally included with them...
, including livebearersLive-bearing aquarium fishLive-bearing aquarium fish, often simply called livebearers, are fish that retain the eggs inside the body and give birth to live, free-swimming young.-Common aquarium livebearers:...
, killifishKillifishA killifish is any of various oviparous cyprinodontiform fish . Altogether, there are some 1270 different species of killifish, the biggest family being Rivulidae, containing more than 320 species...
es - Order StephanoberyciformesStephanoberyciformesThe Stephanoberyciformes are an order of marine ray-finned fishes, consisting of about 45 species, the majority of which belong to the ridgehead family . The Stephanoberyciformes are mostly uncommon deep-sea species with little, if any, importance to commercial fishery...
, including the ridgeheadRidgeheadRidgeheads, also known as bigscales, are a family of small, deep-sea stephanoberyciform fish. The family contains approximately 37 species in five genera; their distribution is worldwide, but ridgeheads are absent from the Arctic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea...
s - Order BeryciformesBeryciformesBeryciformes is an order of ray-finned fishes. This is a very poorly understood group of 16 families, 57 genera, and about 219 species. Some people believe that it is probably an artificial assemblage of unrelated taxa that are thrown together for convenience only; there are no convincing...
, including the fangtoothFangtoothFangtooths are beryciform fish of the family Anoplogastridae that live in the deep sea. The name is from Greek anoplo meaning "unarmed" and gaster meaning "stomach"...
s and pineconefishes - Order ZeiformesZeiformesThe 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 40 species in seven families, mostly deep-sea types....
, including the doriesDory (fish)The common name dory is shared by members of several different families of large-eyed, silvery, deep-bodied, laterally compressed, and roughly discoid marine fish. As well as resembling each other, dories are also similar in habit: most are deep-sea and demersal... - Order Gobiesociformes, the clingfishes
- Order GasterosteiformesGasterosteiformesGasterosteiformes is an order of ray-finned fishes that includes the sticklebacks and relatives.In the Gasterosteiformes, the pelvic girdle is never attached to the cleithra directly, and the supramaxillary, orbitosphenoid, and basisphenoid bones are absent. The body is often partly or completely...
including the sticklebackSticklebackThe Gasterosteidae are a family of fish including the sticklebacks. FishBase currently recognises sixteen species in the family, grouped in five genera. However several of the species have a number of recognised subspecies, and the taxonomy of the family is thought to be in need of revision...
s - Order SyngnathiformesSyngnathiformesSyngnathiformes is an order of ray-finned fishes that includes the pipefishes and seahorses.These fishes have elongate, narrow, bodies surrounded by a series of bony rings, and small, tubular mouths. Several groups live among seaweed and swim with the body aligned vertically, to blend in with the...
, including the seahorseSeahorseSeahorses compose the fish genus Hippocampus within the family Syngnathidae, in order Syngnathiformes. Syngnathidae also includes the pipefishes. "Hippocampus" comes from the Ancient Greek hippos meaning "horse" and kampos meaning “sea monster”.There are nearly 50 species of seahorse...
s and pipefishPipefishPipefishes or pipe-fishes are a subfamily of small fishes, which, together with the seahorses, form the family Syngnathidae.-Anatomy:...
es - Order SynbranchiformesSynbranchiformesSynbranchiformes, 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:...
, including the swamp eelSwamp eelThe swamp eels are a family of freshwater eel-like fishes of the worldwide tropics.-Description:...
s - Order TetraodontiformesTetraodontiformesThe Tetraodontiformes are an order of highly derived ray-finned fish, also called the Plectognathi. Sometimes these are classified as a suborder of the Perciformes...
, including the filefishFilefishFilefish are tropical to subtropical tetraodontiform marine fish of the diverse family Monacanthidae. Found in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, the filefish family contains approximately 107 species in 26 genera...
es and pufferfishPufferfishTetraodontidae is a family of primarily marine and estuarine fish of the Tetraodontiformes order. The family includes many familiar species which are variously called pufferfish, balloonfish, blowfish, bubblefish, globefish, swellfish, toadfish, toadies, honey toads, sugar toads, and sea squab...
es - Order Pleuronectiformes, the flatfishFlatfishThe flatfish are an order of ray-finned fish, 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 through and around the head during development...
es - Order ScorpaeniformesScorpaeniformesScorpaeniformes is an order of ray-finned fish, but it has also been called the Scleroparei.They are known as "mail-cheeked" fishes due to their distinguishing characteristic, the suborbital stay: a backwards extension of the third circumorbital bone across the cheek to the preoperculum, to which...
, including scorpionfishScorpionfishScorpaenidae, the scorpionfish, are a family of mostly marine fish that includes many of the world's most venomous species. As the name suggests, scorpionfish have a type of "sting" in the form of sharp spines coated with venomous mucus. The family is a large one, with hundreds of members. They are...
es and the weaver fishes - Order PerciformesPerciformesThe Perciformes, also called the Percomorphi or Acanthopteri, is one of the largest orders of vertebrates, containing about 40% of all bony fish. Perciformes means perch-like. They belong to the class of ray-finned fish and comprise over 7,000 species found in almost all aquatic environments...
40% of all fishes including anabantids, bassBass (fish)Bass is a name shared by many different species of popular gamefish. The term encompasses both freshwater and marine species. All belong to the large order Perciformes, or perch-like fishes, and in fact the word bass comes from Middle English bars, meaning "perch."-Types of basses:*The temperate...
es, cichlidCichlidCichlids are fishes from the family Cichlidae in the order Perciformes. Cichlids are members of a group known as the Labroidei along with the wrasses , damselfish , and surfperches . This family is both large and diverse. At least 1,300 species have been scientifically described, making it one of...
s, gobies, gouramiGouramiGouramis are a family, Osphronemidae, of freshwater perciform fishes. The fish are native to Asia, from Pakistan and India to the Malay Archipelago and north-easterly towards Korea. The name "gourami" is also used for fish of the families Helostomatidae and Anabantidae. "Gouramis" is an example of...
s, mackerelMackerelMackerel is a common name applied to a number of different species of fish, mostly, but not exclusively, from the family Scombridae. They may be found in all tropical and temperate seas. Most live offshore in the oceanic environment but a few, like the Spanish mackerel , enter bays and can be...
s, perchPerchPerch is a common name for fish of the genus Perca, freshwater gamefish belonging to the family Percidae. The perch, of which there are three species in different geographical areas, lend their name to a large order of vertebrates: the Perciformes, from the Greek perke meaning spotted, and the...
es, scatScat-Education:* School and College Ability Test* Somerset College of Arts and Technology, a community college in Somerset, England* Shrewsbury College of Arts & Technology, a community college in Shropshire, England-Games:* Thirty-one , a card game...
s, whitings, wrasses