| Lepidotes Temporal range: 245.0–70.6 Ma Late Triassic - Early Cretaceous |
|
|---|---|
| Lepidotes notopterus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Semionotiformes |
| Family: | Semionotidae |
| Genus: | Lepidotes |
Lepidotes is an extinct genus of neopterygian ray-finned fish from the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. Fossils have been found worldwide.
Inhabiting both freshwater lakes and shallow seas, Lepidotes was typically about 30 centimetres (12 in) long. The body was covered with thick, enamelled scales.[1] Batteries of peg-like teeth enabled Lepidotes to crush the shells of its molluscan prey.
Lepidotes was one of the earliest fish in which the upper jawbones were no longer attached to the jugal bone. This allowed the jaws to be stretched into a 'tube' so that the fish could suck in prey from a greater distance than in previous species.[1] This system is still seen in some modern fish, such as carp.
Lepidotes is frequently pictured as the prey of the large dinosaur Baryonyx because its scales were found in the stomach region of a fossil Baryonyx.