Actinopteri

Template:Short description Template:Automatic taxobox Template:Portal Actinopteri (Template:IPAc-en) is the sister group of Cladistia (bichirs) in the class Actinopterygii (ray-finned fish).

Dating back to the Permian period, the Actinopteri comprise the Chondrostei (sturgeons and paddlefish), the Holostei (bowfins and gars), and the teleosts; in other words, all extant ray-finned fish other than the bichirs.

In this clade the lungs have evolved into a swim bladder.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Characters of Actinopteri include <ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> paired fin structure, a single dorsal fin, fulcra, a large median gular and numerous branchiostegals, ganoid scales, and a valvula cerebelli in the brain.

Classification

The following cladogram<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:ITIS</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> summarizes the evolutionary relationships of extant Actinopteri. Divergence time for each clade in mya are based on:<ref name=PNAS>Template:Cite journal</ref>