Beardfish
| Beardfishes | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Stout Beardfish, (P. nobilis) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Polymixiiformes D. E. Rosen & Patterson, 1969 |
The beardfishes consist of a single extant genus, Polymixia, of deep-sea marine ray-finned fish named for their pair of long hyoid barbels. At present they are classified in their own order Polymixiiformes,[1] but as Nelson says, "few groups have been shifted back and forth as frequently as this one".[2] For instance, they have previously been classified as belonging to the Beryciformes. They are of little economic importance.[3]
They are found in tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic, Indian and western Pacific Ocean. They are bottom-dwelling fish, found down to about 800 m (2,600 ft) depth. Most are relatively small fish, although one species is over 40 cm (16 in) in length.[3]
Classification
There is currently one extant family in this order and several extinct genera:[1]
Timeline of genera
References
- 1 2 Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2006). "Polymixiiformes" in FishBase. February 2006 version.
- ↑ Joseph S. Nelson. Fishes of the World. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0-471-54713-1.
- 1 2 Paxton, John R. (1998). Paxton, J.R.; Eschmeyer, W.N., eds. Encyclopedia of Fishes. San Diego: Academic Press. p. 161. ISBN 0-12-547665-5.
- 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.