''Rhinodipterus'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric dipnoan
sarcopterygians
Sarcopterygii (; ) — sometimes considered synonymous with Crossopterygii () — is a taxon (traditionally a class or subclass) of the bony fishes known as the lobe-finned fishes. The group Tetrapoda, a mostly terrestrial superclass includin ...
or lobe-finned fish, that lived in the
Devonian
The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Silurian, million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Carboniferous, Mya. It is named after Devon, England, w ...
Period, between 416 and 359 million years ago. It is believed to have inhabited shallow, salt-water reefs, and is one of the earliest known examples of marine
lungfish
Lungfish are freshwater vertebrates belonging to the order Dipnoi. Lungfish are best known for retaining ancestral characteristics within the Osteichthyes, including the ability to breathe air, and ancestral structures within Sarcopterygii, i ...
. Research based on an exceptionally well-preserved specimen from the
Gogo Formation
The Gogo Formation in the Kimberley region of Western Australia is a Lagerstätte that exhibits exceptional preservation of a Devonian reef community. The formation is named after Gogo Station, a cattle station where outcrops appear and foss ...
of Australia has shown that ''Rhinodipterus'' has cranial ribs attached to its braincase and was probably adapted for air-breathing to some degree as living lungfish are. This could be the only case known for a marine lungfish with air-breathing adaptations.
See also
*
Sarcopterygii
Sarcopterygii (; ) — sometimes considered synonymous with Crossopterygii () — is a taxon (traditionally a class or subclass) of the bony fishes known as the lobe-finned fishes. The group Tetrapoda, a mostly terrestrial superclass includ ...
*
List of sarcopterygians
This list of lobe-finned fish is a comprehensive listing of all genera that have ever been included in the class Sarcopterygii, excluding purely vernacular terms and Tetrapods. The list includes all commonly accepted genera, but also genera that ...
*
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
* Clement, A. & Long, J.A. 2010. Air-breathing adaptation in a marine Devonian lungfish. ''Biology Letters'' 6: 509–512.
* Long, J.A. &
Trinajstic, K. 2010. The Late Devonian Gogo Formation Lagerstatte –Exceptional preservation and Diversity in early Vertebrates. ''Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences'' 38: 665-680
External links
''Rhinodipterus'' at rsbl.royalsocietypublishing.org
Prehistoric lungfish genera
Gogo fauna
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