In Depth Scapanorhynchus appears to have been so much like the living goblin shark (Mitsukurina owstoni) that the two were considered by some to be the same genus. However study of the teeth has brought the conclusion that while very similar, they are different enough to keep the two separated. The most striking feature of … Read more
In Depth Also known as the ‘Ginsu shark’, Cretoxyrhina was one of the biggest sharks of its time, considerably bigger even than its contemporary Squalicorax. Cretoxyrhina was near the top of the food chain, and it had a diet that included almost anything that was in front of it, including mosasaurs. There is also strong … Read more
In Depth Hybodus is instantly recognisable by the spike that rises up in front of its dorsal fins. The purpose of this has been explained as a form of defence from larger predators to display. With fossils dating back from the end of the Permian to the early Cretaceous and a cosmopolitan distribution, Hybodus must … Read more
Onchopristis: Research Database Mesozoic · Fossil Record Research Note: Onchopristis was a significant fossil species providing important data on vertebrate evolution during the Mesozoic era. Research Finding Status Grade Year Method Citation Impact Martill & Ibrahim 2011: Onchopristis and Cretaceous fish diversity Journal of African Earth Sciences Confirmed A 2011 Fossil Martill & … Read more
In Depth Further Reading – Carboniferous fishes from the central western States – Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 39:163-226 – C. R. Eastman – 1903. – Two new Stethacanthid sharks (Stethacanthidae, Symmoriida) from the Pennsylvanian of Indiana, USA – Palaeontographica Abteilung A 213:115-141 – R. Zangerl – 1990. – Early Carboniferous Fishes (Acanthodian, … Read more
In Depth Ornithoprion was a carboniferous shark that was also related to the sharks Edestus, perhaps better known as the Scissor toothed shark, and Helicoprion. In fact it was the discovery of Ornithoprion that allowed for a more accurate reconstruction of Helicoprion with how the distinctive tooth-whorl fitted inside the mouth. Further Reading – A … Read more
Tristychius: Research Database Elasmobranchii (Chondrichthyes) · Carboniferous (~335-320 MYA) · Europe — Scotland (Coal Measures) Research Note: Tristychius was an early elasmobranch from the Carboniferous of Scotland — one of the earliest known sharks and an important taxon for understanding early shark evolution and the diversification of chondrichthyans in the Carboniferous. Research Finding … Read more
In Depth Falcatus was a tiny shark that has managed to stand out from others because of the presence of a dorsal spine that rises up from where you might expect the first dorsal fin to have been. However instead if rising backwards like in other primitive sharks such as Orthacanthus and Xenacanthus, the dorsal … Read more