| Gonorynchiformes Temporal range:
| |
|---|---|
| |
| Milkfish, Chanos chanos | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Cohort: | Otocephala |
| Superorder: | Ostariophysi |
| Clade: | Anotophysi Rosen and Greenwood, 19701 |
| Order: | Gonorynchiformes Greenwood, Rosen, Weitzman, and Myers, 19661 |
| Type species | |
| Gonorynchus gonorynchus (Linnaeus, 1766)
| |
| Families | |
|
Chanidae (milkfish) | |
The Gonorynchiformes /ɡɒnəˈrɪŋkɪfɔːrmiːz/ 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 "Gonorhynchiformes", with an "h", is frequently seen but not official.
Gonorynchiformes have small mouths and no teeth. They are the sole group in the clade Anotophysi, a subgroup of the superorder Ostariophysi. They are characterized by a primitive Weberian apparatus formed by the first three vertebrae and one or more cephalic ribs within the head. This apparatus is believed to be a hearing organ, and is found in a more advanced and complex form in the related cypriniform fish, such as carp.2 Also like the cypriniforms, the gonorynchiforms produce a substance from their skin when injured that dissolves into the water and acts an alarm signal to other fish.3
Etymology
The name comes from Ancient Greek γωνία (gōnía), meaning "angle", ῥύγχος (rhúnkhos), meaning "snout", and Latin formes, meaning "form".
Taxonomy
Although many of the families are rather small, there are several fossil genera. This listing of the groups of Gonorynchiformes includes fossil fish with a short description.24 They are listed in approximate order of how primitive their characteristics are.
| Phylogeny of living Gonorynchiformes5 |
The 5th edition of Fishes of the World classifies the extant taxa in this order as follows, as does Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes:678
Order Gonorynchiformes Greenwood, Rosen, Weitzman, and Myers, 1966
- Family Chanidae Günther, 1868 (milkfishes)
- Family Gonorynchidae Richardson, 1848 (beaked sandfishes)
- Family Kneriidae Günther, 1868 (shellears)
- Family Phractolaemidae Boulenger, 1901 (snake mudheads)
Fossil taxa
The following fossil gonorynchiforms are also known:910
- Genus †Lecceichthys Taverne, 1998 (Late Cretaceous of Italy)
- Genus †Sorbininardus Taverne, 1999 (Late Cretaceous of Italy)
- Family †Apulichthyidae Taverne, 1997 (Late Cretaceous of Italy)
- Family †Halecopsidae Casier, 1946 (Early Eocene of Europe)
References
References
- Thomas J. Near; Christine E. Thacker (2024). "Phylogenetic Classification of Living and Fossil Ray-Finned Fishes (Actinopterygii)". Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History. 65 (1): 3–302. doi:10.3374/014.065.0101.
- Nelson, Joseph, S. (2006). Fishes of the World. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 0-471-25031-7.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Banister, Keith F. (1998). Paxton, J.R.; Eschmeyer, W.N. (eds.). Encyclopedia of Fishes. San Diego: Academic Press. pp. 96–97. ISBN 0-12-547665-5.
- Taverne, Emmanuel Fara, Mireille Gayet, Louis (2010), "The Fossil Record of Gonorynchiformes", Gonorynchiformes and Ostariophysan Relationships, CRC Press, pp. 173–226, doi:10.1201/b10194-6, ISBN 978-0-429-06156-1, retrieved 2024-05-09
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link) - Thomas J. Near, Alex Dornburga, Matt Friedman (2014): Phylogenetic relationships and timing of diversification in gonorynchiform fishes inferred using nuclear gene DNA sequences (Teleostei: Ostariophysi). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, DOI:10.1016/j.ympev.2014.07.013
- Nelson, J.S.; Grande, T.C.; Wilson, M.V.H. (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. pp. 162–163. doi:10.1002/9781119174844. ISBN 978-1-118-34233-6. LCCN 2015037522. OCLC 951899884. OL 25909650M.
- "Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes Classification". California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
- Richard van der Laan; William N. Eschmeyer & Ronald Fricke (2014). "Family-group names of recent fishes". Zootaxa. 3882 (2): 1–230. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3882.1.1. PMID 25543675.
- Poyato-Ariza, Francisco José; Grande, Terry; Diogo, Rui (2010-01-01), Grande, Terry; Poyato-Ariza, Francisco José; Diogo, Rui (eds.), "Gonorynchiform Interrelationships: Historic Overview, Analysis, and Revised Systematics of the Group", Gonorynchiformes and Ostariophysan Relationships (1 ed.), CRC Press, pp. 227–337, doi:10.1201/b10194-7, ISBN 978-0-429-06156-1, retrieved 2026-04-21
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link) - Laan, Richard van der (2018-10-11). "Family-group names of fossil fishes". European Journal of Taxonomy (466). doi:10.5852/ejt.2018.466. ISSN 2118-9773.
Bibliography
Bibliography
- Sepkoski, Jack (2002). "A compendium of fossil marine animal genera". Bulletins of American Paleontology. 364: 560. Archived from the original on 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2011-05-17.