. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College. Zoology. Elopldae Megalopidae Albuloidea Notacanthidae Halosauridae Anguilloidea Saccopharyngoidea. Figure 24. Phylogeny of the Elopomorphg. The Elopidae, Megalopidae, and Anguilliformes form an unresolved tricho- tomy based on present data. Shared derived characters of the Elopomorpha include 1, the presence of a leptocephalus larva; 2, fusion of the angular and retroarticular bones of the lower jaw; and 3, the presence of rostral and prenasal ossicles. See Patterson and Rosen (1977) for further characters. Justification of t
. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College. Zoology. Elopldae Megalopidae Albuloidea Notacanthidae Halosauridae Anguilloidea Saccopharyngoidea. Figure 24. Phylogeny of the Elopomorphg. The Elopidae, Megalopidae, and Anguilliformes form an unresolved tricho- tomy based on present data. Shared derived characters of the Elopomorpha include 1, the presence of a leptocephalus larva; 2, fusion of the angular and retroarticular bones of the lower jaw; and 3, the presence of rostral and prenasal ossicles. See Patterson and Rosen (1977) for further characters. Justification of the branching pattern in the Anguilli- formes may be found in Greenwood (1977) and Forey (1973). (Drawings of fishes from J. S. Nelson [1976], courtesy of John Wiley Publishing Co.) food seems to consist more of soft-bodied deep-sea invertebrates. One rather mod- ified notacanth, Lipogemjs, often placed in a separate family, is poorly known but lacks teeth and possesses a small subter- minal suctorial mouth (Greenwood, 1977). rhe two remaining groups of elopo- morphs, the iMegalopidae and Elopidae, are often considered to be closely related to each other, together forming the sister group to the Anguilliformes. Patterson and Rosen (1977) ha\e recentK reviewed the evidence for this dicliotonn' and have concluded that little justification exists, and, on i:)resent evidence, the interrela- tionships of the Elopidae, Megalopidae, and Anguilliformes are best represented as an unresoK ed trichotomy (Fig. 24). The family Elopidae, tenpounders, contains a single genus Elops with about five species which are distributed worldwide in trop- ical seas. Most commonK foimd in estu- aries and near shore as adults, tenpound- ers may invade brackish waters. The Megalopidae, tarpons, with two species in tropical and subtropical waters of the Pacific and Atlantic, grow to a large size (maximum length about 2 m) and are iuii(iue among elopomorphs in possess- ing a connection between the ear and the
Size: 2087px × 1197px
Photo credit: © Book Worm / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookauthorharvarduniversity, bookcentury1900, booksubjectzoology
