By Kari Foster and Robyn Hess (2000)
Holostei were the dominant group in the middle of the Mesozoic but were nearly extinct by the end of the Cretaceous. Presently, there are only two surviving groups, the garpikes (Lepisosteus) and the bowfins (Amia).Class Osteicthyes
Subclass Actinoptergyii
Superorder Holostei
Amia are studied in this course as an example of the primative vertebrate dermatocranium and the Osteicthyan pectoral girdle.