Green River Amphiplaga brachyptera Fish Fossil

Description: This is a well-preserved specimen of this uncommon species. This one exhibits the skin pattern. Amphiplaga are one of the less common Green River fish fossils, making up some 1% of the total from Fossil Lake, its only known location. Named by the famous 19th Century paleontologist E.D. Cope, the name Amphiplaga is thought to mean "ambiguous wound", pointing to the fact that the holotype specimen was headless. Shaped rather like a cross between a trout and a perch, the Percopsidae are colloquially termed “trout perches”. Fossil percopsids are only known from North America, the current home of the extant genus Percopsis. With a maximum total length of 6” and an average of less than 4”, this is a mature adult specimen.