Deltoptychius (from Greek: δέλτα délta, 'triangle' and Greek: πτυχή ptyche 'fold') is an extinct species of cartilaginous fish related to the modern chimaeras. It lived in the Carboniferous period of present-day United Kingdom. Fossils of the genus have been found in the Glencartholm Volcanic Beds Formation of the Upper Border Group in Scotland.
| Deltoptychius Temporal range:
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| Tooth of D. primus | |
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| Well-preserved body fossil of D. armigerus | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Holocephali |
| Order: | †Menaspiformes |
| Family: | †Deltoptychiidae |
| Genus: | †Deltoptychius Morris & Roberts, 1862[1] |
Although it emerged over 300 million years ago, Deltoptychius was similar in appearance to modern-day chimaeras, possessing a long, whip-like tail and large, wing-like pectoral fins that it probably used to glide through the water. Deltoptychius's large eyes allowed it to hunt in deep waters, crushing shellfish between solid tooth plates in its mouth.[2]
References
edit- ^ Patterson, C. (10 June 1965). "The phylogeny of the chimaeroids". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences. 249 (757): 149. doi:10.1098/rstb.1965.0010.
- ^ Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 29. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
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