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Iniopteryx

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Iniopteryx
Temporal range: Pennsylvanian, 300 Ma
Iniopteryx rushlaui
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Chondrichthyes
Subclass: Holocephali
Order: Iniopterygiformes
Family: Iniopterygidae
Genus: Iniopteryx

Iniopteryx ("Nape Wing") is an extinct genus of cartilaginous fish.[1][2][3][4] It is from the Pennsylvanian epoch of the Carboniferous period, approximately 300 million years ago. Their fossils have been found in North America, primarily in two states: Ohio and Montana. In general, very little is known about this species.

Characteristics

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Iniopteryx was a chimaera-like fish, described as "plump". It is known that the species average size was around half a meter in length. While the species had specialized spines and fins superficially similar to that of a flying fish, there is much speculation about whether it could glide like a flying fish, or was actually benthic.

References

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  1. ^ "Main Groups of Cartilagous Fishes". Mikko's Phylogeny Archive. Retrieved 2019-05-15.
  2. ^ "The Search for Ancient Sharks - Prehistoric Shark Gallery". Discovery Communications Inc. 2007-11-10. Archived from the original on 2007-11-10. Retrieved 2019-05-15.
  3. ^ "Hallazgo del fósil de un cerebro". amenito.com (in Spanish). 2019-05-15. Archived from the original on 2011-07-07. Retrieved 2010-08-11.
  4. ^ Zangerl, Rainer; Case, Gerard Ramon (1973). Iniopterygia : a new order of Chondrichthyan fishes from the Pennsylvanian of North America. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Chicago : Field Museum of Natural History.
  • Vertebrate Palaeontology by Michael J. Benton
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