''Cheirolepis'' (from el, χείρ , 'hand' and el, λεπίς 'scale') is an extinct genus of

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. They comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. The ray-finned fishes are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or hor ...

that lived in the

Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Silurian, million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Carboniferous, Mya. It is named after Devon, England, whe ...

period of Europe and North America. It is the only genus yet known within the family Cheirolepidae and the order Cheirolepiformes. It was among the most basal of the Devonian actinopterygians and is considered the first to possess the "standard" dermal cranial bones seen in later actinopterygians. ''Cheirolepis'' was a predatory freshwater and estuarine animal about long. It had a streamlined body with small, triangular

ganoid scale A fish scale is a small rigid plate that grows out of the skin of a fish. The skin of most jawed fishes is covered with these protective scales, which can also provide effective camouflage through the use of reflection and colouration, as we ...

s similar to those of the

Acanthodii Acanthodii or acanthodians is an extinct class of gnathostomes (jawed fishes), typically considered a paraphyletic group. They are currently considered to represent a grade of various fish lineages leading up to the extant Chondrichthyes, which ...

. These scales had a basic structure typical of many early

osteichthyans Osteichthyes (), popularly referred to as the bony fish, is a diverse superclass of fish that have skeletons primarily composed of bone tissue. They can be contrasted with the Chondrichthyes, which have skeletons primarily composed of cartilag ...

, with a superficial of

ganoine Ganoine or ''ganoin'' is a glassy, often multi-layered mineralized tissue that covers the scales, cranial bones and fin rays in some non-teleost ray-finned fishes, such as gars, bichirs, and coelacanths. It is composed of rod-like, pseudoprism ...

overlying

dentine Dentin () (American English) or dentine ( or ) (British English) ( la, substantia eburnea) is a calcified tissue of the body and, along with enamel, cementum, and pulp, is one of the four major components of teeth. It is usually covered by ena ...

, and a basal plate of

bone A bone is a Stiffness, rigid Organ (biology), organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red blood cell, red and white blood cells, store minerals, provid ...

. ''Cheirolepis'' had well-developed fins which gave it speed and stability, and was probably an active predator. Based on the size of its eyes, it hunted by sight. ''Cheirolepiss jaws, lined with sharp

teeth A tooth ( : teeth) is a hard, calcified structure found in the jaws (or mouths) of many vertebrates and used to break down food. Some animals, particularly carnivores and omnivores, also use teeth to help with capturing or wounding prey, tear ...

, could be opened very wide, allowing it to swallow prey two thirds of its own size.

Species

Six possible species of ''Cheirolepis'' are currently known. The

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

, named in 1835, is ''C. trailli''. Remains of this species have been found from

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

and date back to the

Eifelian The Eifelian is the first of two faunal stages in the Middle Devonian Epoch. It lasted from 393.3 ± 1.2 million years ago to 387.7 ± 0.8 million years ago. It was preceded by the Emsian Stage and followed by the Givetian Stage. North American s ...

and

Givetian The Givetian is one of two faunal stages in the Middle Devonian Period. It lasted from million years ago to million years ago. It was preceded by the Eifelian Stage and followed by the Frasnian Stage. It is named after the town of Givet in Fra ...

stages of the Middle Devonian. ''C. canadensis'' was described in 1881 from material found in Miguasha,

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

that dated back to the middle

Frasnian The Frasnian is one of two faunal stages in the Late Devonian Period. It lasted from million years ago to million years ago. It was preceded by the Givetian Stage and followed by the Famennian Stage. Major reef-building was under way during th ...

stage of the Late Devonian. Two species, ''C. gracilis'' and ''C. gaugeri'', have been found from

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

in deposits that are of Givetian age. They were first described in 1973 from scale material that is now of questionable validity. Another species has been found from Belarus that lived during the Eifelian, and has been named ''C. sinualis''. A new species has recently been described from a locality in Red Hill,

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

deposited during the Mid-Late Devonian boundary. The specimen from which this species was named, consisting of scales and a lower jaw, was originally referred to ''C. canadensis''. New, more complete specimens have shown it to be distinct from the type, although a species name is yet to be given for the remains.Arratia, G. and Cloutier, R. (2004). A new cheirolepidid fish from the Middle-Upper Devonian of Red Hill, Nevada, USA. ''In:'' Arratia, G., Wilson, M. V. H. and Cloutier, B., eds., ''Recent Advances in the Origin and Early Radiation of Vertebrates''. Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil. München, Germany. pp. 583-598. Cheirolepis canadensis

References

External links

''Cheirolepis''
at

Palaeos Palaeos.com is a web site on biology, paleontology, phylogeny and geology and which covers the history of Earth. The site is well respected and has been used as a reference by professional paleontologists such as Michael J. Benton, the professor of ...

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q149446, from2=Q19817097, from3=Q19817098 Prehistoric ray-finned fish genera Devonian fish of North America Taxa named by Louis Agassiz Fossil taxa described in 1835