Stunning Cretaceous Lebanese Needle Fish Fossil

Description: A rarely seen member of the Order Aspidorynchiformes, Family Aspidorynchidae, it is a member of the bony fishes commonly known as a “needle fish” due to its body shape. The upper and lower jaws have been extended into a rostrum; these fish were predators of smaller fish. Notice the rod-like scales and the mouthful of sharp teeth. The genus went extinct at the end of the Cretaceous, passing the way of the dinosaurs. While there is a repaired matrix crack, there is virtually NO restoration, with none of the paint details often seen from fossils of the region.