Apsopelix

Apsopelix is an extinct genus of ray-finned fish that existed about 95-80 million years ago in the shallow waters of the Western Interior Seaway, Hudson Seaway, England, France,^[1] and Japan.^[2]

Apsopelix Temporal range: Late Cretaceous (Albian-Campanian) ~95–80 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Apsopelix anglicus fossil (LACM 16445), Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	†Crossognathiformes
Suborder:	†Crossognathoidei
Family:	†Crossognathidae
Genus:	†Apsopelix Cope, 1871
Species
†A. anglicus (Dixon, 1850) †A. miyazakii (Yabumoto et al., 2012)
Synonyms
Apsopelix sauriformis Cope, 1871 Helmintholepis Cockerell, 1919 Leptichthys Stewart, 1899 Palaeoclupea Dante, 1942 Pelecorapis Cope, 1874 Syllaemus Cope, 1875

Description

Apsopelix was a small teleost, reaching lengths of 23-27 centimeters (9-10 inches).^[2] Fossils possess long gill rakers, which are indicative of a microphagous lifestyle, and evidence of a long gut alongside a robust body show that Apsopelix likely fed on plankton.^[1]

Classification

Apsopelix sp. fossil

The genus Apsopelix has a confusing taxonomic history, with several genera being lumped into it over time. Fossils of the genus found in new locations or preserved unusually would be given distinct genus names, and the holotype specimen was misattributed as a species of Calamopleurus. The genus has also been assigned to a plethora of different teleost groups, such as Mugilidae, Clupeidae, Elopoidei, Clupeomorpha, Osteoglossomorpha, Percesoces, Crossognathidae, Syllaemidae, Pelycorapidae, Apsopelicidae.^[1]

Today, Apsopelix is considered to be in the order Crossognathiformes and in the family Crossognathidae, alongside Crossognathus.^[2]