Large tuna-like fish named in honor of
North Texas amateur fossil hunter who discovered the 90-million-year-old
specimen in Dallas
County
and donated it to the Perot Museum of Nature and Science
Date: February 22, 2016
Source: Perot Museum
of Nature and Science
A 90-million-year-old fossil fish, which
has been on display at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas , turns out to be a
new species. Research conducted by Kenshu Shimada, Ph.D., professor at DePaul University
in Chicago and research associate of the Sternberg Museum
in Kansas ,
reveals the 5.5-foot-long fossil fish to possess a tuna-like body with a unique
'hook-shaped sail' on its back. The fish has been given a new species
name, Pentanogmius fritschi, in honor of Joseph Fritsch, a local amateur
collector who discovered the fossil, dug it up with the help of another avid
fossil collector, Kris Howe, and donated it to the Perot Museum .
"At first glance, the specimen
looked like a known Pentanogmius species, but when I began to trace the
curved dorsal fin, its front half kept extending backwards far beyond where I
thought it would end relative to its rear half. That's when I realized I have
something new to science," said Dr. Shimada.
The fossil fish is a nearly complete
skeleton from the Britton Formation of the Eagle Ford Shale in Dallas
County .
Dr. Shimada's study suggests that Pentanogmius fritschi was an active
fish in open ocean environments that possibly fed on a variety of small animals
like squid and other fish.
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