Description: A diverse number of actionopterygian fish have been described from the Triassic continental sediments around Sydney, with the youngest coming from the Wianamatta Group. Many of them are of uncertain taxonomic status due to poor preservation of cranial features. This specimen is missing the anteriormost portion of the head, but the balance is preserved in exquisite detail. Several sites around Sydney were quarried for shale and clay, and are known as the St Peter’s quarries, of which there were some 20-odd. They have been a rich source of fossils, the most famous of which is a labyrinthodont known as Paracyclotosaurus. The lower part of the Ashfield Sahle, in addition to amphibians and fish includes insects and bivalves indicative of a lacustrine environment. The stratigraphically higher parts of the shale provides evidence of brackish to shallow marine conditions indicative of transgression of the sea. Although part of the head is missing, the balance of the specimen preserves detail with amazing fidelity.

Also see: Mesozoic Fish Fossils