Neopterygii
Temporal range: Late Permian – Recent
Gar fish
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
(unranked): Actinopteri
Subclass: Neopterygii
Infraclasses

Holostei
Teleostei
See text for orders.

Neopterygii is a group of fish. Neopterygii means "new fins".

There are only few changes during their evolution from the earlier actinopterygians. They appeared somewhere in the Late Permian, before the time of the dinosaurs. The Neopterygii is a very successful group of fishes, because they can move more rapidly than their ancestors. Their scales and skeletons began to lighten during their evolution, and their jaws became more powerful and efficient.

The following diagram explains their relationship to the teleosts. Almost all modern fish are teleosts.

Evolution and diversity

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Neopterygii
Holostei

Ginglymodi (gars and their fossil relatives)



Halecomorphi (bowfin and its fossil relatives)




Teleostei




Classification

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References

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  1. Gardiner, B. G. (1993). "Osteichtythyes: basal actinopterygians". Fossil Record II.
  2. Nelson, Joseph, S. (2016). Fishes of the World. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 978-1-118-34233-6.