Tarrasiiformes

Tarasiiformes is an extinct order of prehistoric ray-finned fish.^[1]

Tarrasiiformes Temporal range: Carboniferous PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
†Paratarrasius hibbardi Lund and Melton Jr. 1982 from the Mississippian (Serpukhovian) Heath Formation of Bear Gulch, Montana
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	†Tarrasiiformes
Families
Tarrasiidae Traquair 1881 emend. Woodward 1891

Taxonomy

• Order †Tarrasiiformes sensu Lund & Poplin 2002 [Haplistia]^[2][3][4]
  • Family †Tarrasiidae Traquair 1881 emend. Woodward 1891
    • Genus †Apholidotos Lund ex Frickinger 1991 nomen novum
      • Species †Apholidotos ossna Lund ex Frickinger 1991 nomen novum
    • Genus †Paratarrasius Lund & Melton 1982
      • Species †Paratarrasius hibbardi Lund & Melton 1982
    • Genus †Tarrasius Traquair 1881
      • Species †Tarrasius problematicus Traquair 1881

Timeline of genera

Tarrasius is an extinct genus of Tarasiiformes. Tarrasius problematicus (of Mississippian origin, ~ 350 Ma) featured a fully regionalized tetrapod-like spine divided into 5 distinct segments.^[5][6] It is not considered a transitional fossil though, but an extreme example of convergent evolution.

See also

• Paleontology portal
• Fish portal

• Prehistoric fish
• List of prehistoric bony fish
• Convergent evolution

Bibliography

• Sepkoski, Jack (2002). "A compendium of fossil marine animal genera". Bulletins of American Paleontology. 363: 1–560. Retrieved 2011-05-17.