Actinolepidae is an extinct family of placoderm fishes which lived during the Early Devonian period. They are considered to be among the most primitive of the arthrodires, and are widely accepted to be phylogenetically basal to the group.[1]
| Actinolepidae Temporal range: Early Devonian
| |
|---|---|
| |
| reconstruction of Actinolepis | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | †Placodermi |
| Order: | †Arthrodira |
| Suborder: | †Actinolepidoidei |
| Family: | †Actinolepidae |
| Genera | |
Description edit
The bodies of Actinolepids are wide and flat, suggesting that most members of this family were benthic fish. Their jaws were comparatively underdeveloped in comparison to the more robust-jawed arthrodires that would come after them, such as Dunkleosteus and Coccosteus, indicating that it likely subsisted primarily on smaller, softer-bodied animals such as mollusks, or worms instead of larger, tougher prey animals.[2]
References edit
- ^ "Actinolepidae - Palaeos.org". Archived from the original on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2008-09-01.
- ^ Dupret, Vincent (7 December 2010). "Revision of the genus Kujdanowiaspis Stensiö, 1942 (Placodermi, Arthrodira, "Actinolepida") from the Lower Devonian of Podolia (Ukraine)". Geodiversitas. 32 (1): 5–63. doi:10.5252/g2010n1a1. S2CID 129505974. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
External links edit
- "Actinolepidae". Palaeos.org. Archived from the original on 2007-02-28. Retrieved 2008-09-01.[better source needed]
 | This article about a placoderm is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |