Ichthyodectes

Name: Ichthyodectes.
Phonetic: Ik-fee-o-dek-tees.
Named By: Edward Drinker Cope‭ ‬-‭ ‬1870.
Classification: Chordata,‭ ‬Actinopterygii,‭ ‬Ichthyodectidae,‭ ‬Ichthyodectinae.
Species: I.‭ ‬ctenodon‭ (‬type‭)‬,‭ ‬I.‭ ‬acanthicus,‭ ‬I.‭ ‬anaides,‭ ‬I.‭ ‬arcuatus,‭ ‬I.‭ ‬elegans,‭ ‬I.‭ ‬goodeanus,‭ ‬I.‭ ‬libanicus,‭ ‬I.‭ ‬minor,‭ ‬I.‭ ‬tenuidens.
Diet: Piscivore/Carnivore.
Size: Up to‭ ‬4‭ ‬meters long.
Known locations: Canada,‭ ‬Manitoba‭ ‬-‭ ‬Vermilion River Formation,‭ ‬Saskatchewan‭ ‬-‭ ‬Ashville Formation.‭ ‬USA,‭ ‬Alabama‭ ‬-‭ ‬Mooreville Chalk Formation,‭ ‬Texas‭ ‬-‭ ‬Eagle Ford Formation,‭ ‬Wyoming‭ ‬-‭ ‬Pierre Shale Formation.
Time period: Cenomnanian through to the Campanian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: ‭Many individuals.




       Like with relative genera such as Gillicus and Xiphactinus,‭ ‬Ichthyodectes would have been a key predator in the waters of the Western Interior Seaway,‭ ‬the shallow sea that submerged the central portion of North America during the Cretaceous.‭ ‬Ichthyodectes had a long body similar to that of a modern day barracuda and was well adapted for efficient high speed cruising,‭ ‬as well as bursts of intense speed.

Further reading
-‭ ‬Another Sternberg‭ “‬Fish-within-a-Fish‭” ‬Discovery:‭ ‬First Report of Ichthyodectes ctenodon‭ (‬Teleostei‭; ‬Ichthyodectiformes‭) ‬with Stomach Contents.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science‭ ‬113‭(‬3‭ & ‬4‭)‬:197-205.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Michael J.‭ ‬Everhart,‭ ‬Scott A.‭ ‬Hageman‭ & ‬Brian L.‭ ‬Hoffman‭ ‬-‭ ‬2010.



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