Oniichthys
Fossil genus of fishes / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Oniichthys is an extinct genus of gar in the family Lepisosteidae. It contains a single species, O. falipoui, known from the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) of Morocco.[1]
Oniichthys | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Clade: | Ginglymodi |
Order: | Lepisosteiformes |
Family: | Lepisosteidae |
Tribe: | Lepisosteini |
Genus: | †Oniichthys Cavin & Brito, 2001 |
Species: | †O. falipoui |
Binomial name | |
†Oniichthys falipoui Cavin & Brito, 2001 | |
Synonyms | |
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It is known from a few very well-preserved, near-complete specimens from the Kem Kem Formation, where it coexisted with the famous Spinosaurus.[2] It closely resembles the modern genus Atractosteus, and is generally placed as its sister genus, a sister to Atractosteus and Lepisosteus, or even as a species within Atractosteus as per Grande (2010),[3] although this latter view has been disputed based on differences in skull morphology.[4][5]
The genus name references the Ooni, divine Yoruba kings, while the specific epithet honors Christian Falipou, who loaned one of the type specimens.[1]