Obruchevichthys

O-bru-chev-ik-thees.
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Cassidy Wood

Paleoentomologist

Cassidy Wood uncovers the tiny yet significant world of prehistoric insects. Her research on amber-preserved specimens has revealed intricate details about ancient ecosystems.

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Name

Obruchevichthys

Phonetic

O-bru-chev-ik-thees.

Named By

Ahlberg.

Classification

Chordata, Tetrapoda, Amphibia, Ichthyostegalia, Elginerpetontidae.

Diet

Carnivore.

Species

O. gracilis

Size

Exact length unknown.

Known locations

Latvia.

Time Period

Frasnian of the Devonian.

Fossil representation

Partial jaw fragment.

In Depth

       Analysis of Obruchevichthys remains has struck up similarities with a tetrapod named Elginerpeton. This has revealed that Obruchevichthys was also a member of the early tetrapods, not a lobe finned fish as first thought. Along with Elginerpeton, Obruchevichthys predated the other tetrapods by an estimated 5-8 million years.

Further Reading

– Morphology and nature of evolution of crossopterygian fishes. – Trudy Paleontological Institute Akademie Nauk SSSR 163: 1-239. – E. I. Vorobyeva – 1977. – Revision of the early tetrapod Obruchevichthys Vorobyeva, 1977 from the Frasnian (Upper Devonian) of the North-western East European Platform. – Paleontological Journal 48(10):1082-1091. – Ga�l Cl�ment & Oleg Anatolyevich Lebedev – 2014.

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