Eusthenopteron
| Eusthenopteron | ||||||||||||
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Live reconstruction of Eusthenopteron |
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| Temporal occurrence | ||||||||||||
| Upper Devonian | ||||||||||||
| ≈ 375 million years | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Eusthenopteron | ||||||||||||
| Whiteaves , 1881 |
Eusthenopteron is an extinct genus of fish-like meat finfish (Sarcopterygii) from the Upper Devonian of North America and Europe. It is considered a prime example of the original representatives of the Tetrapodomorpha .
features
Eusthenopteron is characterized by an elongated, torpedo-shaped body. The maximum length of completely preserved specimens is about 1 meter. On the basis of less fully preserved pieces, however, it can be estimated that Eusthenopteron could get even larger, possibly more than 1.5 meters.
The eye openings in the skull are very small, and as is generally the case with the Devonian meat finfish, the mouth is terminal and the mouth cleft is deep. Since Eusthenopteron had a lung - swim bladder - organ and a strongly developed fin skeleton in addition to the gills , it could have been able to move briefly outside of water. The three extremity bones of the terrestrial vertebrates humerus (“ humerus ”), ulna (“ ulna ”) and radius (“ spoke ”) can already be differentiated in the skeleton of the front fins . The two pointed dorsal fins sat far back, the pelvic fins and the anal fin opposite them. The caudal fin is diphyzerk and three-pointed. Erik Jarvik provided a very precise anatomical reconstruction in 1980.
species
- Eusthenopteron foordi Whiteaves, 1881. Type species , Frasnium of Québec .
- Eusthenopteron savesoderberghi Jarvik , 1937. Frasnium of Latvia .
- Eusthenopteron traquairi Westoll , 1937. Frasnium of Elgin , Scotland.
- Eusthenopteron farloviensis White, 1961. Frasnium from England .
- Eusthenopteron obruchevi Vorobyeva, 1977. Upper Devonian of Latvia.
literature
- KA Frickhinger: Fossils Atlas Fish , Mergus-Verlag, Melle, 1999, ISBN 3-88244-018-X .
Web links
- Palæos: Eusthenopteron