Macristiidae (see text) Aulopiformes /ˈɔːləpɪfɔːrmiːz/ is a diverse order of marine ray-finned fish consisting of some 15 extant and several prehistoric families with about 45 genera and over 230 species.

The scientific name means "Aulopus-shaped", from Aulopus (the type genus) + the standard fish order suffix "-formes".

It ultimately derives from Ancient Greek aulós (αὐλός, "flute" or "pipe") + Latin forma ("external form"), the former in reference to the elongated shape of many aulopiforms.

As an alternative, the superorders are sometimes united as an unranked clade named Euteleostei, but in that case the Protacanthopterygii would need to be split further to account for the phylogenetic uncertainty.

[5][6] An extinct clade of Aulopiformes, the suborder Enchodontoidei and its many constituent families, were dominant nektonic fish throughout much of the Late Cretaceous.