Green River Priscacara & Diplomystus Fish Fossil Showpiece
"Framed and Ready to Hang"

Description: This is a fossil showpiece in an oak frame ready to hang in home or office. It contains three especially well preserved fish fossils, two Priscacara and one Diplomystus, all aesthetically spaced on the large 27.5 by 18.3 inch plate. The 1.6 inch deep oak frame is equipped with a heavy wire hanger. All-in-all, a magnificent fossil showpiece and decorative gem. The specimen is shipped in a custom-made crate measuring 33.5 by 24 by 6.5 inches securing its safety now and in the future.

These 50 million year old, Eocene-Era fossil fish come from one of the world's famous Laggerstatten, the Green River Formation in Wyoming. A small portion of the fish fossils from Green River exhibits such fine preservation. The significant extent of soft-tissue preservation that makes the site famous is evident in this specimen.

Genus Priscacara is perhaps the most popular of the Green River fish fossils. A member of the Family Priscacaridae, the name Priscacara means "primitive head". Shaped rather like a sunfish, the genus sports sturdy, protective dorsal and anal spines. Among the two species, liops and serrata, serrata is uncommon. The species name comes from the diagnostic serrated preopercle, seen here in closeup. Liops is the smaller species, never exceeding 150 mm, whereas serrata have been found up to 375 mm. The genus went extinct at the end of the Miocene, and is thought by some to be related to the modern-day Cichildae.

Early workers proposed that genus Diplomystus was closely related to Knightia, an incorrect assumption, as Diplomystus is not even placed within the same Order. Diplomystus has the body form and mouth placement of a surface feeder, as is thought to have been a predator of smaller surface-feeders such as Knightia. Indeed, specimens of Diplomystus have been found with Knightia in their stomachs or mouths, a classic demonstration of a predator caught by its prey!