Mesomyzon

Mesomyzon Temporal range: Barremian–Aptian, 125-121 Ma PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Hyperoartia
Order:	Petromyzontiformes
Genus:	Mesomyzon Chang, Zhang & Miao 2006
Type species
Mesomyzon mengae Chang, Zhang & Miao 2006

Mesomyzon mengae is an extinct lamprey from freshwater strata of the Early Cretaceous-aged Yixian Formation, in China. So far, M. mengae is the only lamprey, and by default, the only agnathan known from post-Paleozoic fossils.^[1]

The animal's exquisitely preserved fossils show a creature very similar to modern-day lampreys, having a well-developed sucking oral disk, a branchial basket, at least seven pairs of gill pouches and corresponding gill arches, impressions of gill filaments, and at least 80 myomeres of its musculature.^[1]

References

1 2 Chang, M. M.; Zhang, J.; Miao, D. (2006). "A lamprey from the Cretaceous Jehol biota of China". Nature 441 (7096): 972–974. doi:10.1038/nature04730. PMID 16791193.

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, April 26, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.