Ventral gill arch muscles and the interrelationships of gnathostomes, with a new classification of the Vertebrata

The ventral gill arch muscles of chondrichthyans, Latimeria , dipnoans, larval amphibians and actinopterygians are described and compared. Muscle patterns are characterized as primitive or derived and the derived patterns are used to test various hypotheses of the interrelationships of these griathostome groups. Gnathostomes differ from agnathans in having branchial muscles associated with the ventral gill arches. The monophyly of chondrichthyans is corroborated by the presence of coracobranchiales of hypobranchial origin. The monophyly of Recent teleostomes (Osteichthyes) is indicated by the presence of discrete transversi ventrales and interarcuales ventrales, and by the loss of the fifth superficial constrictor. A monophyletic Sarcopterygii which includes Latimeria is refuted by three paired branchial muscles found in dipnoans, Recent choanates and actinopterygians, but missing in Latimeria: pharyngoclaviculares, obliqui ventrales 1 and transversi ventrales 4. A new name, Euosteichthyes, is proposed for the group including dipnoans, choanates and actinopterygians. Sarcopterygii is restricted to include only dipnoans and choanates (among Recent organisms). Actinistia, including Latimeria , is proposed as the sister-group of all other Recent osteictithyans. Brachiopterygians (polypterids) are placed within Actinopterygii. A phylogenetic hypothesis supporting this classification is presented.