In Depth
Actinolepis is a genus of placoderm fish that lived during the Devonian period. Fossils of Actinolepis have usually been more associated with Eastern Europe, but at least one species of Actinolepis is known from fossil deposits in New Zealand. It is worth remembering that back in the Devonian the planets land masses were arranged very differently to how they are today and coming together to form a supercontinent before breaking apart again. This made it easier for some types of animals to have what appears today as a very large geographical range.
Further Reading
- Actinolepis spinosa n. sp. (Arthrodira) from the Early Devonian of Latvia. - Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 5 (4): 287–292. - Elga Mark-Kurik - 1985. - A new actinolepid arthrodire (Class Placodermi) from the Lower Devonian Sevy Dolomite, east-central Nevada. - Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 129(2):241-266. - H. G. Johnson, D. K. Elliott & J. H. Wittke - 2000. - New Early Devonian (late Emsian) placoderms from Belarus. - Journal of Paleontology. 94 (4): 773–787. - Dmitry P. Plax & Michael J. Newman - 2020.
