Platycephalidae

The Platycephalidae are a family of marine ray-finned fish, most commonly referred to as flatheads. They are relatives of the lionfish, and belong to the order Perciformes.

==Taxonomy== Platycephalidae was first proposed as a family in 1839 by the English naturalist William Swainson. The 5th edition of Fishes of the World classifies this family within the suborder Platycephaloidei in the order Scorpaeniformes. Other authorities differ and do not consider the Scorpaeniformes to be a valid order because the Perciformes is not monophyletic without the taxa within the Scorpaeniformes being included within it. These authorities consider the Platycephalidae to belong to the suborder Platycephaloidei, along with the families Bembridae, Parabembridae, Hoplichthyidae and Plectrogeniidae within the Perciformes.