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Description: | Specimen of a fossil fish, Coccosteus cuspidatus, collected from unspecified rocks of Middle Devonian age from Lethen Bar, Nairnshire (Scotland). Collected by Thomas Atthey.
Coccosteus was a Devonian fish that had its head and part of its body covered with bony plates, which can easily be seen in this fossil. This fish was a hunter. The bony plates of its jaw had sharp, serrated edges (a bit like a steak knife), which helped it to tear through the flesh of its prey (the animals that it ate). The tail of Coccosteus is not covered in bony plates, so this part of the fish is less commonly fossilised. (The soft parts often decay before the animal is buried and preserved). Thomas Atthey, who collected this fossil, is better known for his collection of local Carboniferous fish in the Hancock Museum.
The specimen was found in Highlands.
It is from the Devonian period (418 - 362 million years ago) | Publisher: | Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums | Subjects: | Classification: Chordata Atthey Pisces Thomas | Temporal: | Devonian period (418 - 362 million years ago) | Source: | Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums | Identifier: | http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/geofinder/se... | Go to resource |
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Coccosteus was a Devonian fish…
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