''Occithrissops'' 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 are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or h ...
of the
Jurassic
The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...
, described from
Sundance Formation
The Sundance Formation is a western North American sequence of Middle Jurassic to Upper Jurassic age Dating from the Bathonian to the Oxfordian, around 168-157 Ma, It is up to 100 metres thick and consists of marine shale, sandy shale, sandstone, ...
. The genus name of ''Occithrissops'' refers to the occidental occurrence of the genus and its relationship to ''
Thrissops
''Thrissops'' (from el, θρῐ́ξ , 'hair' and el, ὄψις 'look') is an extinct genus of stem-teleost fish from the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. Its fossils are known from the Solnhofen Limestone, as well as the Kimmeridge Clay.
''T ...
''.
Description
''Occithrissops'' reached length about . Although it is placed within
Ichthyodectiformes
Ichthyodectiformes is an extinct order of marine stem- teleost ray-finned fish. The order is named after the genus ''Ichthyodectes'', established by Edward Drinker Cope in 1870. Ichthyodectiforms are usually considered to be some of the closest ...
, it have some different characters compared to other Jurassic ichthyodectiform ''
Thrissops
''Thrissops'' (from el, θρῐ́ξ , 'hair' and el, ὄψις 'look') is an extinct genus of stem-teleost fish from the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. Its fossils are known from the Solnhofen Limestone, as well as the Kimmeridge Clay.
''T ...
'' and ''
Allothrissops
''Allothrissops'' is an extinct genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above ...
'', and original description described this taxon as Ichthyodectiformes ''
incertae sedis
' () or ''problematica'' is a term used for a taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Alternatively, such groups are frequently referred to as "enigmatic taxa". In the system of open nomenclature, uncertain ...
''.
Later study considered this taxon is basal ichthyodectiform, and shared some morphological similarities with ''
Jinjuichthys''.
See also
*
Prehistoric fish
The evolution of fish began about 530 million years ago during the Cambrian explosion. It was during this time that the early chordates developed the skull and the vertebral column, leading to the first craniates and vertebrates. The first fi ...
*
List of prehistoric bony fish
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15715830
Prehistoric ray-finned fish genera
Jurassic fish of Europe
Ichthyodectiformes