Ophidiiformes
{{Short description|Order of ray-finned fish}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| fossil_range = {{fossil range|Maastrichtian|present}}
| image = Fawn cusk-eel.jpg
| image_upright = 1.1
| image_caption = Fawn cusk-eel, Lepophidium profundorum
| taxon = Ophidiiformes
| authority = L. S. Berg, 1937
| subdivision_ranks = Suborders
| subdivision = See text
| type_species = Ophidion barbatum
| type_species_authority = Linnaeus 1758
}}
Ophidiiformes {{IPAc-en|ɒ|'|f|ɪ|d|i|.|ᵻ|f|ɔːr|m|iː|z}} 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. They have either smooth scales or no scales, a long dorsal fin and an anal fin that typically runs into the caudal fin. They mostly come from the tropics and subtropics, and live in both freshwater and marine habitats, including abyssal depths. They have adopted a range of feeding methods and lifestyles, including parasitism. The majority are egg-laying, but some are viviparous.
The earliest fossil members are known from the Maastrichtian, and include the basal ophidiiform Pastorius from Italy and several species of the basal cusk-eel Ampheristus from the United States and Germany.{{Cite journal |last=Carnevale |first=Giorgio |last2=Johnson |first2=G. David |date=2015 |title=A Cretaceous Cusk-Eel (Teleostei, Ophidiiformes) from Italy and the Mesozoic Diversification of Percomorph Fishes |url=https://bioone.org/journals/copeia/volume-103/issue-4/CI-15-236/A-Cretaceous-Cusk-Eel-Teleostei-Ophidiiformes-from-Italy-and-the/10.1643/CI-15-236.full |journal=Copeia |volume=103 |issue=4 |pages=771–791 |doi=10.1643/CI-15-236 |issn=0045-8511|url-access=subscription }}{{Cite journal |last=Friedman |first=Matt |last2=V. Andrews |first2=James |last3=Saad |first3=Hadeel |last4=El-Sayed |first4=Sanaa |date=2023-06-16 |title=The Cretaceous–Paleogene transition in spiny-rayed fishes: surveying “Patterson’s Gap” in the acanthomorph skeletal record André Dumont medalist lecture 2018 |url=https://popups.uliege.be/1374-8505/index.php?id=7048 |journal=Geologica Belgica |language=en |doi=10.20341/gb.2023.002 |issn=1374-8505|doi-access=free }}{{cite journal |last1=Near |first1=Thomas J |last2=Thacker |first2=Christine E |date=18 April 2024 |title=Phylogenetic classification of living and fossil ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii) |journal=Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History |volume=65 |doi=10.3374/014.065.0101 |doi-access=free}}
Distribution
This order includes a variety of deep-sea species, including the deepest known, Abyssobrotula galatheae, found at {{convert|8370|m|ft}} in the Puerto Rico Trench. Many other species, however, live in shallow water, especially near coral reefs, while a few inhabit freshwater. Most species live in tropical or subtropical habitats, but some species are known from as far north as the coast of Greenland, and as far south as the Weddell Sea.{{cite book |editor=Paxton, J.R. |editor2= Eschmeyer, W.N.|author= Nielsen, Jørgen G.|year=1998|title=Encyclopedia of Fishes|publisher= Academic Press|location=San Diego|pages= 133–134|isbn= 0-12-547665-5}}
Characteristics
Ophidiiform fish typically have slender bodies with small heads, and either smooth scales, or none at all. They have long dorsal fins, and an anal fin that is typically united with the caudal fin. The group includes pelagic, benthic, and even parasitic species, although all have a similar body form. Some species are viviparous, giving birth to live young, rather than laying eggs. They range in size from Grammanoides opisthodon which measures just {{convert|5|cm|in}} in length, to Lamprogrammus shcherbachevi at {{convert|2|m|ft}} in length.
The families Ranicipitidae (tadpole cods) and Euclichthyidae (eucla cods) were formerly classified in this order, but are now preferred in Gadiformes; Ranicipitidae has been absorbed within the family Gadidae.
Classification
The order Ophidiiformes is subdivided into suborders and families 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}}{{Cite journal |last=Wong |first=Man-Kwan |last2=Chen |first2=Wei-Jen |date=2024-10-01 |title=Exploring the phylogeny and depth evolution of cusk eels and their relatives (Ophidiiformes: Ophidioidei) |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1055790324001568 |journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution |volume=199 |pages=108164 |doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2024.108164 |issn=1055-7903|url-access=subscription }}
- Order Ophidiiformes
- Genus †Pastorius (Late Cretaceous of Italy)
- Suborder Ophidioidei
- Family Acanthonidae Wong & Chen, 2024 (deepsea cusk-eels)
- Family Brotulidae Swainson, 1838 (bearded cusk-eels)
- Family Ophidiidae Rafinesque, 1810 (cusk-eels)
- Family Carapidae Poey, 1867 (pearlfishes)
- Suborder Bythitoidei
- Family Bythitidae Gill, 1861 — viviparous brotulas
- Family Parabrotulidae Nielsen, 1968 — false brotulas
Until recent taxonomic revisions, the suborder Ophidioidei was a paraphyletic grouping. However, the Bythitoidei are viviparous and seem to make up a monophyletic group,{{cite book | author1 = Jørgen G. Nielsen | author2 = Daniel M. Cohen | author3 = Douglas F. Markle | author4 = C. Richard Robins | name-list-style = amp | year = 1999 | title = FAO Species Catalogue Volume 18 Ophidiiform Fishes of the World (Order Ophidiiformes) An annotated and illustrated catalogue of pearlfishes, cusk-eels, brotulas and other ophidiiform fishes known to date | publisher = Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome | isbn = 9251043752 | page = 3}} while the Ophidioidei are oviparous.{{cite book | author1 = Daniel M. Cohen | author2 = Jørgen G. Nielsen | name-list-style = amp | year = 1978 | title = NOAA Technical Report NMFS Circular 417 Guide to the Identification of Genera of the Fish Order Ophidiiformes With a Tentative Classification of the Order | url = https://spo.nmfs.noaa.gov/Circulars/CIRC417.pdf | access-date = 30 June 2018 | publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Marine Fisheries Service | page = 6}}
Timeline of genera
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color:eocene bar:NAM13 from: -48.6 till: 0 text: Dannevigia
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References
{{Reflist}}
- {{FishBase_order|order=Ophidiiformes|year=2006|month=February}}
- {{ITIS |id=553139 |taxon=Ophidiiformes |access-date=June 23, 2005}}
- {{cite journal | last = Sepkoski | first = Jack | title = A compendium of fossil marine animal genera | journal = Bulletins of American Paleontology | volume = 364 |page=560 | year = 2002 | url = http://strata.ummp.lsa.umich.edu/jack/showgenera.php?taxon=611&rank=class | access-date = 2011-05-17 }}
{{Actinopterygii}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q574457}}
{{Authority control}}