Perch-like fishes

The perch-like fishes (Perciformes) is an order of ray-finned fishes, typified by the perch. It contains the largest number of species of any vertebrate order. Fish as diverse as gobies, barracudas and remoras are in this group.

Family

  • Cichlid fish (Cichlidae)

    Cichlid fish are famed for their rapid evolution, particularly in the African Great Lakes, where over a thousand new species have evolved over the last 12,400 to 100,000 years. The members of the cichlid family have diverse diets, mating habits and methods of looking after their young.

  • Gobies (Gobiidae)

    Gobies are the largest family of marine fish, containing 1,875 species of fish. A few species have evolved to live in freshwater, mainly on oceanic islands where there are few other freshwater fish.

  • Istiophoridae Atlantic sailfish (species)

About

The Perciformes, also called the Percomorphi or Acanthopteri, is the largest order of vertebrates containing about 40% of all bony fish. Perciformes means perch-like. They belong to the ray-finned fish and comprise over 7000 species found in almost all aquatic environments. They are also the most variably sized order of vertebrates, ranging from the 7mm Schindleria brevipinguis to the 5m Makaira species. They first appeared and diversified in the Late Cretaceous.

Among well-known members of this group are cichlids, sunfish/bluegill, damselfish, and of course perch.

Read more at Wikipedia

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Scientific Classification

Kingdom: Animal (animalia)

Phylum: Chordate (Chordata)

Class: Actinopterygii

Order: Perciformes

Other Actinopterygii

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