Prehistoric fish Fish were the first vertebrates (animals with backbones). They appeared in the Earth’s oceans more than 500 million years ago. Most were small, jawless, and had heavy armor (a bony protective covering). In the Devonian period, roughly 400 million years ago, fish became numerous. Top 10 Prehistoric fish Before we begin we would just like to point out that while they are fish, sharks have been deliberately left out of this list because they already have their own top ten here. Don't forget, if you want more detailed information upon any of these fish, just click on the names. 10 - Knightia.
Prehistoric fish are early fish that are known only from fossil records. They are the earliest known vertebrates, and include the first and extinct fish that lived through the Cambrian to the Quaternary. The study of prehistoric fish is called paleoichthyology. A few living forms, such as the coelacanth are also referred to as prehistoric fish, or even living fossils, due to their current rarity and similarity to extinct forms. Fish which have become recently extinct are not usually referred to as prehistoric fish.
Categories of prehistoric fish[edit]
Groups of various prehistoric fishes include:
Jawless fish[edit]
Placoderms[edit]
Acanthodians[edit]
Cartilaginous fish[edit]
Basal ray-finned fish[edit]
Modern ray-finned fish (Teleosts)[edit]
Lobe-finned fish[edit]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^Shu, D-G., Conway Morris, S., Han, J.; et al. (January 2003). 'Head and backbone of the Early Cambrian vertebrate Haikouichthys'. Nature. 421 (6922): 526–529. Bibcode:2003Natur.421..526S. doi:10.1038/nature01264. PMID12556891.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
Other reading[edit]
- Janvier, Philippe (1998) Early Vertebrates, Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN0-19-854047-7
- Long, John A. (1996) The Rise of Fishes: 500 Million Years of Evolution, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN0-8018-5438-5
External links[edit]
Fishao Prehistoric Bait Game
What Are Fish?
The scientific definition of fish is complex and more than a little confusing. So here is a much simplified definition. Fish are: chordates, they have a backbone or notochord (cartilaginous support), live entirely in water, have apparatus to extract oxygen from water (gills), appendages without digits, fins, and are generally ectothermic. There are exceptions to these characteristics, for example some fish can live for long periods of time out of water and some fish, like tuna and large sharks have body temperatures well above the temperature of the surrounding water, but for the most part these characteristics describe fish. Fish can have jaws or be jawless, have scales or skin, drink water or not. A number of organisms we call fish actually are not fish at all. Crayfish are not fish, they do not have a backbone, and their appendages have digits, in this case claws. Likewise shellfish are not fish, this is a marketing term to refer to organisms from the water that have shells. There are about 32,000 species of fish that live in both freshwater and saltwater and from the high mountains lakes to the intertidal zone to 23,000 feet deep in the ocean abyssal plains.
Where Are Fossil Fish Found?
Fishao Prehistoric Bait Videos
Fossil fish can be found on every continent, including Antarctica. There are a number of significant fossil sites around the world.
* The Green River Formation, Wyoming produces large quantities of fossil fish including rays. It is also known for its amazing preservation which results is some of the most stunning fish fossils.
* Solnhofen Limestone, Germany. This site has produced some of the most amazing fossils ever discovered, including the famous Archeopteryx fossil. It also produces fish and other marine animal fossils.
* Some of the most exquisitely preserved, Cretaceous fish in the world come from the limestone deposits near Byblos, Lebanon. The discovery of amazingly preserved fossil fish dates back many centuries. In fact they were first mentioned in writing by Herodotus, over 450 years before the birth of Christ.
* The Crato Formation of Brazil has yielded twenty five species of early Cretaceous fish, many with their stomach contents in tact.
* The Gogo Formation, Australia has produced fifty species of fish, many with soft body preservation of anatomical features as small as nerves.
These are only a few of the most famous fish fossil sites.