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Home -> Kingdom Animalia -> Phylum Chordata -> Subphylum Vertebrata -> Class Actinopterygii -> Order Acipenseriformes

Order Acipenseriformes
paddlefishes and sturgeons



2009/11/01 01:24:54.925 GMT-4

By Tanya Dewey

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Acipenseriformes
Members of this Order

The paddlefishes and sturgeons group is a small order of fish that includes about 25 species in two families. This is an ancient fish lineage, dating to before the age of the dinosaurs. There are two species of paddlefish, one in North America and the other in China. There are about 23 species of sturgeons. Sturgeon species can grow to be huge, 4.2 meters (14 feet) or longer and up to 2000 kilograms in mass. Beluga sturgeon are the largest freshwater fish in the world. These are also long-lived fish, living 120 years or more. However, sturgeons have been widely and intensively used by humans for both meat and their roe (eggs), which is made into caviar. As a result most sturgeon species are at risk of extinction.

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Tanya Dewey (author), Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology.

2009/11/01 01:24:55.016 GMT-4

To cite this page: Dewey, T. 2007. "Acipenseriformes" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed November 08, 2009 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Acipenseriformes.html.

Disclaimer: The Animal Diversity Web is an educational resource written largely by and for college students. ADW doesn't cover all species in the world, nor does it include all the latest scientific information about organisms we describe. Though we edit our accounts for accuracy, we cannot guarantee all information in those accounts. While ADW staff and contributors provide references to books and websites that we believe are reputable, we cannot necessarily endorse the contents of references beyond our control.

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