Elpistostegalia

Elpistostegalia
Temporal range:
Middle Devonian (Givetian) – Present, (Possible Eifelian record, 395 Ma)
Panderichthys
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Sarcopterygii
Clade: Tetrapodomorpha
Clade: Eotetrapodiformes
Clade: Elpistostegalia
Camp & Allison, 1961
Subgroups
Synonyms
  • Panderichthyida Vorobyeva, 1989

Elpistostegalia is a clade containing Panderichthys and all more derived tetrapodomorph taxa. The earliest elpistostegalians, combining fishlike and tetrapod-like characters, such as Tiktaalik, are sometimes called fishapods. Although historically Elpistostegalia (referred to as Panderichthyida) was considered an order of prehistoric lobe-finned fishes, it was cladistically redefined to include tetrapods.