In Depth Oligolactoria was a genus of boxfish that seems to show a resemblance to the modern genus Lactoria. Like modern Lactoria box fish, Oligolactoria was a probably a reef fish. Further Reading - A New Genus and Species of Boxfish (Tetraodontiformes: Ostraciidae) from the Oligocene of Moravia, the Second Fossil Representative of the Family. … Read more
In Depth Originally assigned to the genus Clupea (better known as herrings) as Clupea sprattiformis by Blainville in 1818, the species was actually erected to its own genus level in 1974 by Nybelin. Leptolepides were fairly small fish but are among the most numerous known from the Solnhofen limestones of Germany. Aside from being similar … Read more
In Depth Originally listed as a species of Dipnorhynchus, Westollrhynchus was described as a distinct genus of sarcopterygiian fish in 2001. Further Reading - A Primitive Dipnoan Fish from the Lower Devonian of Germany. - W. Lehmann & T. S. Westoll - 1952. - Melanognathus, a Primitive Dipnoan from the Lower Devonian of the Canadian … Read more
In Depth In the simplest terms, Aspidorhynchus was very similar to the modern day gar (a.k.a. garpike) fish that inhabit Central and North America as well as the Caribbean, and are noted for being very successful predators. The body is very long and slender with fairly small fins for the size but a fairly well-developed … Read more
In Depth Rhinodipterus is a genus of lungfish that lived in Australia during the Late Devonian. Rhinodipterus seems to have had cranial ribs attached to the brain case as well as being at least partially adapted to breathing in the open air. This might suggest that Rhinodipterus was a shallow water fish, and coupled with … Read more