Rhizodus

Rhizodus (meaning "root tooth") is an extinct genus of giant freshwater lobe-finned fish belonging to the group Rhizodontida. It was even bigger than the beluga sturgeon, making it the largest freshwater fish to have ever existed. Carbon-dated fossils show that Rhizodus went extinct 290 million years ago.

Rhizodus

The two species are:

• Rhizodus hibberti Owen, 1840 (type species)
• Rhizodus serpukhovensis Smirnova, 2022

Description

What makes Rhizodus so unique among other large rhizodonts such as Barameda were the massive 22 cm (8.7 in) teeth. They were used to crunch and kill prey into digestible bits, rather than swallowing them whole. This prehistoric monstrosity weighed 4,000 kg and resembled a hulking acanthodian with ginormous teeth. On its body were large plates.

Taxonomy

Rhizodus is the type genus of the Rhizodontida, a group of lobe-finned fishes.

Fossil tooth of Rhizodus hibberti.

Species info

Rhizodus hibberti

Rhizodus hibberti is the type species of Rhizodus and is from the Viséan stage of the United Kingdom.

Rhizodus serpukhovensis

Rhizodus serpukhovensis is from the Serpukhovian of Russia. However, it is not well known.

What it ate

The diet of Rhizodus included medium-sized fish and other tetrapods. Rhizodus lunged at terrestrial prey like a crocodile.

Some images

Related pages

• Strunius
• Balistes vegai
• Eusthenopteron
• List of prehistoric bony fish genera

References

1. "Rhizodus hibberti". www.europeana.eu. Archived from the original on 2014-11-29.
2. "Rhizodus". Prehistoric Wildlife.

Other websites

• Media related to Rhizodus at Wikimedia Commons