Araripichthys

Araripichthys castilhoi

• Morocco
• Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela

Araripichthys is an extinct genus of fish bones from the Cretaceous period. Fossils of the genus have been found in Morocco, Mexico, Venezuela and Brazil.

Features

Araripichthys had a high-backed, laterally flattened body with one long dorsal and anal fin. The anal fin was partially scaly. The pectoral fins were very low on the body, pelvic fins and pelvic fins skeleton missing. The caudal fin was forked. the head was broad, eyes large. The moderately deep mouth was toothless, the premaxilla was far vorstreckbar ( protractil ) and formed the edge of the upper jaw. Whether the fins of the genus had hard jets is controversial.

System

The systematic position of Araripichthys is uncertain. Among other things, a basal position within the Teleostei, a kinship with the mucus -like head ( Beryciformes ), the Stachelflossern ( Acanthopterygii ) and the shine Fishy ( Lampriformes ) was adopted.