Carangiformes is an order of the

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. They comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. The ray-finned fishes are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or h ...

es. The order is part of a

clade A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...

which is a sister clade to the

Ovalentaria Ovalentaria is a clade of ray-finned fishes within the Percomorpha, referred to as a subseries. It is made up of a group of fish families which are referred to in ''Fishes of the World's'' fifth edition as'' incertae sedis'', as well as the orde ...

, the other orders in the clade being Synbranchiformes,

Anabantiformes The Anabantiformes , collectively known as Labyrinth fish. are an Order (biology), order of air-breathing freshwater Actinopterygii, ray-finned fish with two suborders, five Family (biology), families (Snakehead (fish), Channidae, Aenigmachanna ...

Istiophoriformes Istiophoriformes are an order of bony fish which is not fully recognized by some taxonomists, with some including the two extant families Xiphiidae and Istiophoridae, and others including the family Sphyraenidae. Families The following famil ...

and

Pleuronectiformes A flatfish is a member of the ray-finned demersal fish order Pleuronectiformes, 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 migratin ...

. The Carangiformes has been regarded as a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

order, with only the Carangidae within it, by some authorities and the

families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...

within the order have been classified as part of the wider order

Perciformes Perciformes (), also called the Percomorpha or Acanthopteri, is an order or superorder of ray-finned fish. If considered a single order, they are the most numerous order of vertebrates, containing about 41% of all bony fish. Perciformes means ...

. The 5th edition of

Fishes of the World ''Fishes of the World'' by the American ichthyologist Joseph S. Nelson (1937–2011) is a standard reference for fish systematics. Now in its fifth edition (2016), the work is a comprehensive overview of the diversity and classification of the ...

classify six families within the order Carangiformes, with other authorities expanding the order to include up to 30 families.

Families

The following families are classified within the order Carangiformes: *

Nematistiidae The roosterfish, ''Nematistius pectoralis'', is a game fish found in the warmer waters of the East Pacific from Baja California to Peru. It is the only species in the genus ''Nematistius'' and the family Nematistiidae. It is distinguished by its ...

Gill A gill () is a respiratory organ that many aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are ...

(roosterfish) *

Coryphaenidae ''Coryphaena'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes known as the dolphinfishes, and is currently the only known genus in the family Coryphaenidae. The generic name is from Greek κορυφή (''koryphē'', "crown, top") and -αινα (-''aina'' ...

Rafinesque Constantine Samuel Rafinesque-Schmaltz (; October 22, 1783September 18, 1840) was a French 19th-century polymath born near Constantinople in the Ottoman Empire and self-educated in France. He traveled as a young man in the United States, ultimat ...

, 1815 (dolphinfish) *

Rachycentridae ''Rachycentron'' is the only known member genus of the family Rachycentridae. The genus contains a single living species, the cobia The cobia (''Rachycentron canadum'') is a species of carangiform marine fish, the only extant representative ...

Gill 1896 (cobia) *

Echeneidae The remora (), sometimes called suckerfish, is any of a family (Echeneidae) of ray-finned fish in the order Carangiformes. Depending on species, they grow to long. Their distinctive first dorsal fins take the form of a modified oval, sucker-li ...

Rafinesque, 1815 (remoras) *

Carangidae The Carangidae are a family of ray-finned fish which includes the jacks, pompanos, jack mackerels, runners, and scads. It is the largest of the six families included within the order Carangiformes. Some authorities classify it as the only family ...

Rafinesque, 1815 (jacks) *

Menidae The moonfish of the genus ''Mene'', the sole extant genus of the family Menidae, are disk-shaped fish which bear a vague resemblance to gourami, thanks to their thread-like pelvic fins. Today, the genus is represented only by ''Mene maculata'' ...

Fitzinger, 1873 (moonfishes) Coryphaenidae, Rachycentridae, and Echeneidae have been suggested to comprise a monophyletic grouping which has been recovered as a sister clade to the Carangidae. Mene oblonga 23

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1399107 Ray-finned fish orders