Pycnodontidae is an extinct family of
ray-finned fish
Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...
es, ranging from 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 143.1 Mya. ...
period until the
Late Eocene
The Priabonian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy, ICS's geologic timescale, the latest age (geology), age or the upper stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Eocene epoch (geology), Epoch or series (stratigraphy), Series. It spans ...
. It was the largest and most derived family of the successful
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic Era is the Era (geology), era of Earth's Geologic time scale, geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Period (geology), Periods. It is characterized by the dominance of archosaurian r ...
fish order
Pycnodontiformes
Pycnodontiformes is an extinct order of primarily marine bony fish. The group first appeared during the Late Triassic and disappeared during the Eocene. The group has been found in rock formations in Africa, Asia, Europe, North and South America. ...
, and one of only two families (alongside the
Serrasalmimidae) to survive into the
Cenozoic
The Cenozoic Era ( ; ) is Earth's current geological era, representing the last 66million years of Earth's history. It is characterized by the dominance of mammals, insects, birds and angiosperms (flowering plants). It is the latest of three g ...
.
Genera
The following genera are known:
* Family Pycnodontidae
Agassiz
Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz ( ; ) FRS (For) FRSE (May 28, 1807 – December 14, 1873) was a Swiss-born American biologist and geologist who is recognized as a scholar of Earth's natural history.
Spending his early life in Switzerland, he recei ...
, 1835
** ''
Acrotemnus''
Agassiz, 1843 (=''
Macropycnodon''
Shimada ''et al.'', 2010)
** ?''
Agassizilia''
Cooper & Martill, 2020
** ''
Akromystax''
Poyato-Ariza & Wenz, 2005
** ''
Anomoeodus
''Anomoeodus'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Pycnodontidae. This genus primarily lived during the mid-to-late Cretaceous period, ranging from the Albian to the very end of the Maastrichtian age, ...
''
Forir, 1887
** ''
Apomesodon''
Poyato-Ariza & Wenz, 2002
** ''
Athrodon''
Sauvage, 1880
** ''
Brauccipycnodus''
Taverne & Capasso, 2021
** ''
Coelodus''
Heckel, 1854
** ''
Costapycnodus''
Taverne, Capasso & del Re, 2019
** ''
Gregoriopycnodus''
Taverne, Capasso & del Re, 2020
** ''
Haqelpycnodus''
Taverne & Capasso, 2018
** ''
Iemanja''
Wenz, 1989
** ''
Libanopycnodus''
Taverne & Capasso, 2018
** ''
Macromesodon''
Blake, 1905
** ''
Micropycnodon''
Hibbard & Graffham, 1945
** ''
Njoerdichthys
''Njoerdichthys'' is an extinct genus of pycnodontid fish from the Cretaceous Hesseltal Formation in Germany.
Discovery and naming
The original holotype of ''Njoerdichthys'' was discovered in 1995 at the abandoned Galgenknapp quarry, previou ...
''
Cawley, Lehmann, Wiese & Kriwet, 2020
** ''
Nonaphalagodus''
Thurmond, 1974
** ''
Ocloedus''
Poyato-Ariza & Wenz, 2002
** ''
Omphalodus''
von Meyer, 1847
** ''
Polypsephis''
Hay, 1899 (=''
Microdon
Hover flies (family Syrphidae) of the genus ''Microdon'' are unusual among the Fly, Diptera. Like other members of the subfamily, they are myrmecophiles, meaning they inhabit the nests of ants.
There are 249 species known worldwide, with the gr ...
''
Agassiz 1833 (preoccupied))
** ''
Potiguara
The Potiguara (also Potyguara or Pitiguara) are an indigenous peoples in Brazil, indigenous people of Brazil. The Potiguara people live in Paraíba, in the municipalities of Marcação, Baía da Traição and Rio Tinto, Paraíba, Rio Tinto. Th ...
''
Machado & Brito, 2006
** ''
Pycnomicrodon''
Hibbard and Graffham, 1941
** ''
Rhinopycnodus''
Taverne & Capasso, 2013
** ''
Sigmapycnodus''
Taverne & Capasso, 2018''
''
** ''
Sphaerodus''
Agassiz, 1843
** ''
Stemmatodus''
Heckel, 1856
** ''
Stenamara''
Poyato-Ariza & Wenz, 2000
** ''
Tahnaichthys
''Tahnaichthys'' is an extinct genus of pycnodontid that lived during the Albian stage of the Early Cretaceous epoch.
Distribution
''Tahnaichythys magnuserrata'' is known from the Tlayúa Quarry, a site belonging to the Tlayúa Formation of ...
''
Pacheco-Ordaz, Mejía & Alvarado-Ortega, 2025
** ''
Tepexichthys''
Applegate, 1992
** ''
Texasensis''
Özdikmen, 2009 (=''
Callodus''
Thurmond, 1974 (preoccupied))
** ''
Typodus''
Quenstedt, 1858 (=''Mesodon''
Wagner, 1851)
** "''
Xinjiangodus''"
Zhou ''et al''., 2023 (
junior homonym
In biology, a homonym is a name for a taxon that is identical in spelling to another such name, that belongs to a different taxon.
The rule in the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature is that the first such name to be published is the s ...
)
** Subfamily
Proscinetinae
*** ''
Neoproscinetes
''Neoproscinetes'' is a genus of extinct Pycnodontidae, pycnodontid fish from the Cretaceous Santana formation, Santana Formation of Brazil. Fossils of this species have also been discovered in the Riachuelo Formation.
Phylogeny
Within Pycnod ...
''
de Figueiredo & Silva Santos, 1990
*** ''
Proscinetes
''Proscinetes'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric pycnodontiform ray-finned fish from the Jurassic.
''Proscinetes'' is the type genus to the subfamily Proscinetinae, whose only other known members are '' Neoproscinetes, Turbomesodon'', '' Tu ...
''
Gistl, 1848
*** ?''
Thiollierepycnodus
''Thiollierepycnodus'' is an extinct genus of pycnodontid fish from the Jurassic of France and Germany. The animal was originally assigned to the genus ''Pycnodus'', but it was given its own genus in 2020. ''Thiollierepycnodus'' was 25 cm l ...
''
Ebert, 2020
*** ?''
Turbomesodon''
Poyato-Ariza & Wenz, 2004
*** ''
Turboscinetes''
Ebert, 2016
**Subfamily
Nursalliinae
***''
Abdobalistum''
Poyato-Ariza & Wenz, 2002''
''
***''
Flagellipinna''
Cawley & Kriwet, 2019
***''
Neomesturus''
Cooper & Martill 2020
***''
Nursallia''
Blot, 1987
***''
Palaeobalistum''
Blainville 1818
***''
Paranursallia''
Taverne ''et al''. 2015
**Subfamily
Pycnodontinae
***''
Agoultpycnodus''
Taverne & Capasso, 2021
***''
Oropycnodus''
Poyato-Ariza & Wenz, 2002
***''
Polazzodus''
Poyato-Ariza 2010
***''
Pycnodus
''Pycnodus'' (from , 'dense' and 'tooth') is an extinct genus of Actinopterygii, ray-finned fish from the Eocene period. It is a wastebasket taxon, although many fossils from the Jurassic or Cretaceous are assigned to this genus, only the Eoce ...
''
Agassiz, 1835
***''
Scalacurvichthys''
Cawley & Kriwet, 2017
***''
Sylvienodus''
Poyato-Ariza, 2013
***''
Tergestinia''
Capasso, 2000
References
Pycnodontiformes
Jurassic first appearances
Priabonian extinctions
Prehistoric ray-finned fish families
Taxa named by Louis Agassiz
Long stubs with short prose
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