Labriformes is an order of ray-finned fishes within the clade Percomorpha. Some authors include the Labriformes as the clade Labroidei within the Perciformes while others include more families within the Labriformes, such as the cichlids and damselfishes. This order was previously restricted to wrasses, parrotfishes, cales, and their close relatives, but most recent studies suggest that the Labriformes also contains highly aberrant groups such as the stargazers and sand lances, which are placed in their own suborder. Almost all members of this order are marine, with the only exception being the amphidromous torrentfish of New Zealand.
Families
The following families are classified within this order, based on Catalog of Fishes (2025):4
- Order Labriformes
- Suborder Labroidei
- Family Centrogenyidae Fowler, 1907 (false scorpionfishes)
- Family Labridae Cuvier, 1816 (wrasses and parrotfishes)
- Family Odacidae Günther, 1861 (cales)
- Suborder Uranoscopoidei
- Family Ammodytidae Bonaparte, 1835 (sand lances)
- Family Uranoscopidae Bonaparte ,1831 (stargazers)
- Family Leptoscopidae Gill, 1859 (southern sandfishes)
- Family Pinguipedidae Günther, 1860 (sandperches)
- Family Cheimarrichthyidae Regan, 1913 (torrentfish)
- Suborder Labroidei
*Nota bene: Although traditionally considered its own family Scaridae, parrotfish have more recently been found deeply nested within the wrasse family Labridae by molecular phylogenetics, such that parrotfish are instead classified in the tribe Scarini.5
References
J. S. Nelson; T. C. Grande; M. V. H. Wilson (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Wiley. pp. 427–430. ISBN 978-1-118-34233-6. Archived from the original on 2019-04-08. Retrieved 2019-12-25. 978-1-118-34233-6 ↩
J. S. Nelson; T. C. Grande; M. V. H. Wilson (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Wiley. pp. 427–430. ISBN 978-1-118-34233-6. Archived from the original on 2019-04-08. Retrieved 2019-12-25. 978-1-118-34233-6 ↩
Thacker, Christine E.; Near, Thomas J. (2025-03-13). "Phylogeny, biology, and evolution of acanthopterygian fish clades". Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries. doi:10.1007/s11160-025-09935-w. ISSN 1573-5184. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11160-025-09935-w ↩
Fricke, R.; Eschmeyer, W. N.; Van der Laan, R. (2025). "ESCHMEYER'S CATALOG OF FISHES: CLASSIFICATION". California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 2025-02-10. https://www.calacademy.org/eschmeyers-catalog-of-fishes-classification ↩
Westneat, Mark W.; Alfaro, Michael E. (2005-03-11). "Phylogenetic relationships and evolutionary history of the reef fish family Labridae". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 36 (2): 370–390. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2005.02.001. https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1055790305000400 ↩