It's a type of tetrapod-like fish belonging to an order called Elpistostegalia, on the ancestral line that leads to tetrapods; our understanding of the emergence of tetrapods largely … They are a clade of bony fish which first appeared in the Silurian , 418 million years ago (mya). To understand how fish fins became limbs (arms and legs with digits) through evolution, we studied the fossils of extinct lobe-finned fishes and early tetrapods. Our ancient relatives The Class Sarcopterygii, the lobe-finned fishes, contains only a few living representatives – the coelacanth and six species of lungfish. They are characterized by their paired, fleshy pectoral, and pelvic fins that are each articulated via a single bone. Included in this definition are the living hagfish ,lampreys , and c artilaginous and bony f ish , … The relative scarcity of these fishes around the world may indicate an unsuccessful evolutionary history. Another part of the skull of this enigmatic beast was found and described in 1985, demonstrating it was really an advanced lobe-finned fish. Lobe-finned fish : The most important features of lobe-finned fish is the lobe in their fins. They are lobe-finned fish, like the lungfish and coelacanths. Tetrapods are thoughto to have evolved from primitive lobe-finned fish. Pronunciation of lobe-finned fish with 1 audio pronunciation, 3 synonyms and more for lobe-finned fish. One line in this group gave rise to the tetrapods . Unlike other fish, Lobe-finned fish have a central appendage in their fins containing many bones and muscles. The lobe-finned fishes are the sister group to the ray-finned fishes. The lobes of a lobe-finned fish have the same structure as the limbs of tetrapods (four-limbed land vertebrates and animals that descended from four-limbed land vertebrates). These lobes can swivel about in either a shoulder socket or a hip socket. Ancestral records clearly show us that terrestrial vertebrates evolved from lobe-finned fishes nearly 400 million years ago. Lobe-finned fish : The most important features of lobe-finned fish is the lobe in their fins. They are lobe-finned fish, like the lungfish and coelacanths. They are a clade of bony fish which first appeared in the Silurian , 418 million years ago (mya). The best specimen we’ve ever found. The fins are very flexible and potentially useful for supporting the body on land, as in lungfish and tetrapods (vertebrates with four limbs). A lobe-finned fish can swivel each of its paired fins about in a shoulder socket or a hip socket, in the same way that a tetrapod can swivel its limbs. This is where a specimen of an ancient lobe-finned fish called Elpistostege watsoni enters the picture. Facts about fishes - Ray Finned Fishes A fish is any member of a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill -bearing aquatic craniate animals that lack limbs with d igits . To understand how fish fins became limbs (arms and legs with digits) through evolution, we studied the fossils of extinct lobe-finned fishes and early tetrapods.