''Apsopelix'' is an extinct genus of ray-finned fish that existed about 95-80 million years ago in the shallow waters of the Western Interior Seaway, Hudson Seaway, England, France, and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Description

''Apsopelix'' was a small teleost, reaching lengths of 23-27 centimeters (9-10 inches). Fossils possess long gill rakers, which are indicative of a microphagous lifestyle, and evidence of a long gut alongside a robust body show that Apsopelix likely fed on plankton.

Classification

The genus ''Apsopelix'' has a confusing taxonomic history, with several genera being lumped into it over time. Fossils of the genus found in new locations or preserved unusually would be given distinct genus names, and the holotype specimen was misattributed as a species of

Calamopleurus ''Calamopleurus'' is an extinct genus of bowfins, comprising three species: ''C. cylindricus'' and ''C. mawsoni'' from Brazil and ''C. africanus'' from Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, aft ...

. The genus has also been assigned to a plethora of different teleost groups, such as Mugilidae, Clupeidae, Elopoidei, Clupeomorpha, Osteoglossomorpha, Percesoces, Crossognathidae, Syllaemidae, Pelycorapidae, Apsopelicidae. Today, ''Apsopelix'' is considered to be in the order Crossognathiformes and in the family Crossognathidae, alongside ''

Crossognathus ''Crossognathus'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. They comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. The ray-finned fishes a ...

.''

References

External links

Fish1FossilsFossils2
Crossognathiformes Prehistoric ray-finned fish genera Late Cretaceous fish Cretaceous fish of North America Cretaceous fish of Asia Cretaceous fish of Europe {{Cretaceous-fish-stub