Eusthenopteron
foordi
Class Crossopterygii
(synonymous with Sarcopterygii), Subclass Tetrapodomorpha, Order
Osteolepiformes, Family Tristichopteridae
Geological
Time: Upper Devonian, Frasnian Stage (~370 million years ago)
Size: Fish
fossil is 320 mm in length
Fossil Site:
Escumiac Bay, Miguasha, Quebec, Canada
|  Description:
One of the most widely-recognized of all the ancient lobe-finned
fishes, this is Eusthenopteron. It is possibly the most recognized
Paleozoic vertebrate. Early reconstructions portrayed it is
crawling from the water, something we know today was not
the case. Nevertheless, it is close to the line from which
the tetrapods arose, and it shares several characteristics
with them such as the skull bones and bones corresponding to
those of  the
forelimbs. This specimen is one of the most complete I have
seen in some time. It was prepared from a nodule by one of
the UK’s premier artisans at a cost of $1500 in fees.
There are two repaired cracks to the matrix which comprise
the only areas where any restoration was carried out. Indeed
from the front the repairs are well-nigh invisible. Since the
site is now a park and World Heritage Site, only examples from
old collections ever seen
Also
see: Paleozoic
Fish Fossils |
|
