Zeiforms as primitive plectognath fishes. American Museum novitates ; no. 2782

Abstract

"Since 1850 acanthurids have been regarded as the nearest relatives of some or all tetraodontiform fishes. New evidence suggests that acanthurid similarities with all tetraodontiforms or with balistoids only are not significant taxonomically. Zeoids uniquely share a number of derived features with tetraodontiforms, however. The reasons for this new proposal are most easily appreciated when acanthurids and zeoids are compared with the cladistically primitive trincanthoid tetraodontiforms rather than with balistoids"--P. [1].