Cladistia

Clade of ray-finned fishes From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cladistia is a subclass of bony fishes whose only living members are the bichirs of tropical Africa.[1] Their major synapomorphies are a dorsal fin with independent rays, and a posteriorly elongated parasphenoid.

Phylum:Chordata
Subclass:Cladistia
Pander 1860 emend. Cope 1871 sensu Lund 2000
Quick facts Scientific classification, Orders ...
Cladistia
Temporal range: Early Triassic–present (Possible Permian and Carboniferous records)
Polypterus senegalus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Subclass: Cladistia
Pander 1860 emend. Cope 1871 sensu Lund 2000
Orders
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Cladistia are the earliest diverging branch of living Actinopterygii, and are thought to have diverged from the Actinopteri, the group which includes all other living ray finned fish, by the Carboniferous.[2] However, the fossil range for the only extant order (Polypteriformes) is comparatively young, only reaching as far back as the mid-Cretaceous of South America and Africa, and the two extant genera of bichir only diverged around the Miocene.[3]

Aside from bichirs, other extinct fish groups thought to be members of the group include the Scanilepiformes, known from Triassic (and possibly Permian[4]) of the Northern Hemisphere.[5][2][6] The Guildayichthyiformes of Carboniferous North America are also sometimes considered cladistians, but this is thought to be dubious, with other authorities placing them as a stem-group to Neopterygii.[6][7]

Taxonomy

Based on work done by Near et al (2017) and Lund (2000):[8]

Disputed members

References

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