Esocidae

The family is classified as follows:{{Cite web |last=Fricke |first=R. |last2=Eschmeyer |first2=W. N. |last3=Van der Laan |first3=R. |date=2025 |title=ESCHMEYER'S CATALOG OF FISHES: CLASSIFICATION |url=https://www.calacademy.org/eschmeyers-catalog-of-fishes-classification |access-date=2025-02-10 |website=California Academy of Sciences |language=en}}

• Family Esocidae
• Subfamily Dalliinae Jordan, 1885
• Genus Dallia Bean, 1880
• Subfamily Esocinae Rafinesque, 1815
• Genus Esox Linnaeus, 1758
• Genus Novumbra Schultz, 1929

Esox is the youngest genus, with Dallia and Novumbra branching off further up the line. The cladogram below has been found by López et al.,{{Cite journal |last1=López |first1=J. Andrés |last2=Chen |first2=Wei-Jen |last3=Ortí |first3=Guillermo |date=August 2004 |title=Esociform Phylogeny |journal=Copeia |volume=2004 |issue=3 |pages=449–464 |doi=10.1643/cg-03-087r1 |issn=0045-8511 |s2cid=198150295 |doi-access=free}} with the two additional fossil genera included at the base of the tree.

{{clade| style=font-size:90%;line-height:90%

|label1=Esociformes

|1={{clade

|1=Umbridae

|label2=Esocidae

|2={{clade

|label3=Incarte sedis

|1=†Oldmanesox

|2=†Estesesox

|5={{clade

|1= Dallia

|6={{clade

|1=Novumbra

|7={{clade

|1=Esox

}} }} }} }} }} }}

The fossil genera Estesesox and Oldmanesox have been recovered in North America. Estesesox fossils have been described from the Lance, Hell Creek, Oldman, Foremost, and Milk River Formations. Oldmanesox fossils have been described from the Oldman Formation.{{Cite journal |last1=Wilson |first1=Mark V. H. |last2=Brinkman |first2=Donald B. |last3=Neuman |first3=Andrew G. |date=September 1992 |title=Cretaceous Esocoidei (Teleostei): early radiation of the pikes in North American fresh waters |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0022336000020849/type/journal_article |journal=Journal of Paleontology |language=en |volume=66 |issue=5 |pages=839–846 |bibcode=1992JPal...66..839W |doi=10.1017/S0022336000020849 |issn=0022-3360 |s2cid=132270276|url-access=subscription }} In 2025, two more fossil esocid genera were described from the Prince Creek Formation of Alaska: Archaeosiilik and Nunikuluk.{{Cite journal |last=Brinkman |first=Donald B. |last2=López |first2=J. Andrés |last3=Erickson |first3=Gregory M. |last4=Eberle |first4=Jaelyn J. |last5=Muñoz |first5=Xochitl |last6=Wilson |first6=Lauren N. |last7=Perry |first7=Zackary R. |last8=Murray |first8=Alison M. |last9=Van Loon |first9=Lisa |last10=Banerjee |first10=Neil R. |last11=Druckenmiller |first11=Patrick S. |date=2025 |title=Fishes from the Upper Cretaceous Prince Creek Formation, North Slope of Alaska, and their palaeobiogeographical significance |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/spp2.70014 |journal=Papers in Palaeontology |language=en |volume=11 |issue=3 |pages=e70014 |doi=10.1002/spp2.70014 |issn=2056-2802|doi-access=free }}

Due to the fragmentary nature of Oldmanesox and Estesesox, little information on the exact relationships between the two genera and the rest of the species in the family has been published. More recent genetic studies which place Dallia and Novumbra in Esocidae may influence future studies on placement of Estesesox and Oldmanesox within the Esocidae and/or Esociformes family trees.

Esocidae has a holarctic distribution. Species in the genus Esox can be found in Eurasia and North America, while Dallia has a more restricted range in Alaska and eastern Siberia. Of extant esocids, Novumbra has the most restricted range of all, being found only on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state.

Despite differing size and mouth shape, all extant species of esocids are sight-based ambush predators, taking any animal they can fit in their mouth. Both pike and blackfishes display cannibalistic tendencies.{{Cite journal|last1=Giles|first1=N.|last2=Wright|first2=R. M.|last3=Nord|first3=M. E.|date=1986|title=Cannibalism in pike fry, Esox lucius L.: some experiments with fry densities|url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1095-8649.1986.tb04930.x|journal=Journal of Fish Biology|language=en|volume=29|issue=1|pages=107–113|doi=10.1111/j.1095-8649.1986.tb04930.x|bibcode=1986JFBio..29..107G |issn=1095-8649|url-access=subscription}}{{Cite journal|last=McPhail|first=J.D.|date=1981-01-01|title=The Freshwater Fishes of Alaska, by J.E. Morrow|journal=Arctic|volume=34|issue=3|doi=10.14430/arctic2730|issn=1923-1245|doi-access=free}} While the Olympic mudminnow is aggressively territorial to fish of the same size during the spawning season, it will generally leave its fry alone.{{Cite journal|last1=Hagen|first1=D. W.|last2=Moodie|first2=G. E. E.|last3=Moodie|first3=P. F.|date=2011-02-14|title=Territoriality and courtship in the Olympic mudminnow (Novumbra hubbsi)|url=https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/abs/10.1139/z72-148|journal=Canadian Journal of Zoology|volume=50|issue=8|pages=1111–1115|language=en|doi=10.1139/z72-148|url-access=subscription}}

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Category:Taxa named by Georges Cuvier

Category:Euteleostei families

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