Lists of prehistoric fish

Prehistoric fish are early fish that are known only from fossil records. They are the earliest known vertebrates, and include the first and extinct fish that lived through the Cambrian to the Quaternary. The study of prehistoric fish is called paleoichthyology. A few living forms, such as the coelacanth are also referred to as prehistoric fish, or even living fossils, due to their current rarity and similarity to extinct forms. Fish which have become recently extinct are not usually referred to as prehistoric fish. They were very different from what we have today. They likely were larger and had tougher scales.

Lists of various prehistoric fishes include:

• List of prehistoric jawless fish
• List of placoderms
• List of acanthodians
• List of prehistoric cartilaginous fish
• List of prehistoric bony fish
• List of sarcopterygians

See also

• Evolution of fish
• Prehistoric life
• Vertebrate paleontology

References

Further reading

• Janvier, Philippe (1998) Early Vertebrates, Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-854047-7
• Long, John A. (1996) The Rise of Fishes: 500 Million Years of Evolution, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-5438-5

External links

• Fossil Fish

• v
• t
• e

Evolution of fish

• Fish
• Timeline of fish evolution

Forerunners

• Basal member
  • †Pikaia
• Cephalochordate
  • †Cathaymyrus
  • Lancelet
• Olfactores
  • †Haikouella
  • Tunicate
  • †Myllokunmingiidae? (†Haikouichthys, †Myllokunmingia)
  • †Zhongxiniscus?

Jawless fish

Cyclostomata	Hagfish Hyperoartia Lamprey
†Conodonts	†Protoconodonta? †Paraconodontida †Conodonta
†Ostracoderms	†Pteraspidomorphi †Thelodonti †Anaspida †Cephalaspidomorphi †Galeaspida †Pituriaspida †Osteostraci

Jawed fish

†Placoderms	†Antiarchi †Arthrodira †Brindabellaspida †Petalichthyida †Phyllolepida †Ptyctodontida †Rhenanida †Acanthothoraci †Pseudopetalichthyida? †Stensioellida?
†Acanthodii	†Acanthodiformes †"Climatiiformes" †Diplacanthiformes †Ischnacanthiformes
Cartilaginous	Elasmobranchii †Ctenacanthiformes †Hybodontiformes †Phoebodontiformes †Xenacanthida Ray Shark Holocephali †Eugeneodontida †Iniopterygiformes †Petalodontiformes †Symmoriiformes Chimaera
Bony	Lobe-finned †Onychodontiformes Coelacanth Rhipidistia †Porolepiformes Lungfish Tetrapodomorpha Ray-finned †"Palaeonisciformes" Cladistia Polypteriformes Chondrostei Acipenseriformes Neopterygii †Pycnodontiformes Halecomorphi Ginglymodi Teleost

Lists

• Lists of prehistoric fish
  • spiny sharks
  • placoderms
  • cartilaginous
  • bony
  • lobe-finned
• List of transitional fossils

Related

• Prehistoric life
• Transitional fossils
• Vertebrate paleontology

† extinct

This article includes a species-related list of lists.