Perciformes

Perciformes
Yellow perch (Perca flavescens)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Superorder:	Acanthopterygii
Order:	Perciformes

The Perciformes ^[1] is the largest order of vertebrates. They have about 40% of all bony fish.^[2]p151

Perciformes means perch-like. They belong to the class of ray-finned fish and have over 7,000 species in almost all aquatic environments.

They have the widest range of sizes of any order of vertebrates, ranging from the 7 mm Schindleria brevipinguis to the 5 metre Makaira species. They first appeared and diversified in the Upper Cretaceous.

Some well-known members of this group are angelfish, barracuda, bass, blenny, cichlids, damselfish, filefish, goby, grouper, remora, swordfish, mackerel, pufferfish, tilefish, tuna, whiting, and of course perch.

1. ↑ also called the Percomorphi or Acanthopteri
2. ↑ Long, John A. 1995. The rise of fishes: 500 million years of evolution. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.