Odontaspis

Odontaspis
Temporal range: Cretaceous - Present

[1]

Smalltooth sand tiger (O. ferox)
Bigeye sand tiger (O. noronhai)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Chondrichthyes
Subclass: Elasmobranchii
Superorder: Selachimorpha
Order: Lamniformes
Family: Odontaspididae
Genus: Odontaspis
Agassiz, 1838
Type species
Carcharias ferox
Risso, 1826

Odontaspis is a genus with two extant species in the sand shark family, Odontaspididae.

Description

The prominent cusps of one Odontaspis species (O. ferox).

Odontaspis species can reach a length of about 3.6 metres (12 ft).

They are large-bodied sharks with long, conical snouts, broad-based dorsal and anal fins, and an asymmetrical caudal fin with a strong lower lobe.

Their teeth are large, with prominent narrow cusps.[2]

They are distinguished from the similar genus Carcharias by the absence of crushing posterior teeth.[3]

These bottom dwelling, deepwater sharks can be found in temperate and tropical waters of all the oceans.[3]

Extant Species

Extinct Species

Extinct species within this genus include: [1]

  • Odontaspis actutissima Agassiz 1843
  • Odontaspis aculeatus Capetta & Case, 1975
  • Odontaspis acutissima Agassiz 1843
  • Odontaspis bicarinatus Williston 1900
  • Odontaspis bronni Agassiz 1843
  • Odontaspis contortidens Agassiz 1843
  • Odontaspis crassidens Agassiz 1843
  • Odontaspis cuspidata Agassiz 1843
  • Odontaspis exilis Leriche 1942
  • Odontaspis incurva Davis 1888
  • Odontaspis macrota Agassiz 1843
  • Odontaspis macrota semistriata Leriche 1942
  • Odontaspis malletiana White 1956
  • Odontaspis sanguinei Case 1978
  • Odontaspis speyeri (Dartevelle & Casier, 1943)
  • Odontaspis verticalis Agassiz 1843
  • Odontaspis vorax le Hon 1871
  • Odontaspis winkleri Leriche, 1905
Fossil teeth of Odontaspis winkleri from Khouribga (Morocco), 55-45 mya

Fossils of Odontaspis have been found all over the world. These extinct sand sharks lived from the Cretaceous to the Quaternary periods (from 136.4 to 0.012 Ma). Fossils of these fishes have been found worldwide.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Fossilworks
  2. ↑ Compagno, L.J.V. (1984). Sharks of the World: An Annotated and Illustrated Catalogue of Shark Species Known to Date. Rome: Food and Agricultural Organization. ISBN 92-5-101384-5.
  3. 1 2 Bourdon, J. Odontaspis Agassiz 1838. Elasmo.com. Retrieved on December 24, 2008.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 6/30/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.