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| Gasterosteiforms | ||||||||
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Suborder Gasterosteoidei Aulorhynchidae ( tubesnouts) Gasterosteidae ( sticklebacks) Suborder Syngnathoidei Superfamily Syngnathoidea Syngnathidae ( pipefish es and seahorses) Infraorder Indostomoida Infraorder Aulostomoida Fistulariidae ( cornetfish es) Superfamily Centriscoidea Centriscidae ( shrimpfish es) |
Gasterosteiformes is an order of ray-finned fishes that includes a number of familiar types, including the sticklebacks, pipefish es, and seahorses. There are about 260 species in 11 families.
In the gasterosteiforms, the pelvic girdle is never attached to the cleithra directly, and the supramaxillary , orbitosphenoid , and basisphenoid bones are absent. The body is often partly or completely covered with dermal plate s.
The two suborders Gasterosteoidei and Syngnathoidei have also been ranked as two closely-related orders.