Esociformes

Esociformes Temporal range: Campanian–present PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Northern pike (Esox lucius)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Superorder:	Protacanthopterygii
Order:	Esociformes Bleeker, 1859
Type species
Esox lucius Linnaeus, 1758
Families
Esocidae G. Cuvier, 1817 Umbridae Bonaparte, 1845
Synonyms
Esocoidei Bleeker, 1859 Haplomi Esocae Umbriformes Günther, 1866

The Esociformes (/ˈiːsɒsɪfɔːrmiːz/) is a small order of freshwater ray-finned fish, with two families, Umbridae and Esocidae.^[1] The pikes of genus Esox give the order its name.

This order is closely related to the Salmoniformes, the two comprising the superorder Protacanthopterygii, and are often included in their order. The esociform fishes first appeared in the mid-Cretaceous — early products of the Euteleostei radiation of that time. They diverged from their sister group Salmoniformes about 110 million years ago, with the extant species having evolved from a common ancestor that lived about 90 million years ago.^[2] Today, they are found in weed-choked freshwater habitats in North America and northern Eurasia.