Latimeriidae
Sign in to saveleft|thumb|Life restoration of Foreyia, an aberrant latimeriid from the Triassic of Europe Latimeriidae is the only extant family of coelacanths, an ancient lineage of lobe-finned fish. It contains two extant species in the genus Latimeria, found in deep waters off the coasts of southern Africa and east-central Indonesia. In addition, several fossil genera are known from the Mesozoic of Europe, the Middle East, and the southeastern United States, dating back to the Triassic.
Taxonomy · GBIF
FAMILY
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumChordata
- ClassCoelacanthi
- OrderCoelacanthiformes
- FamilyLatimeriidae
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Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- taxon
- Parent taxon
- Coelacanthiformes
- Image
- Latimeria chalumnae01.jpg
Show 2 more facts
- P105
- family
via Wikidata · CC0
Article
3 sectionsContents
- Evolution
- Taxonomy
- References
left|thumb|Life restoration of Foreyia, an aberrant latimeriid from the Triassic of Europe Latimeriidae is the only extant family of coelacanths, an ancient lineage of lobe-finned fish. It contains two extant species in the genus Latimeria, found in deep waters off the coasts of southern Africa and east-central Indonesia. In addition, several fossil genera are known from the Mesozoic of Europe, the Middle East, and the southeastern United States, dating back to the Triassic.
The largest known member of the family, the Late Cretaceous Megalocoelacanthus, may have reached 4.5 metres in length.