''Qilinyu rostrata'' is a "maxillate"
placoderm from the late
Ludlow epoch
In the geological timescale, the Ludlow Epoch (from 427.4 ± 0.5 million years ago to 423.0 ± 2.3 million years ago) occurred during the Silurian Period, after the end of the Homerian Age. It is named for the town of Ludlow in Shropshire, England ...
of
Qujing
Qujing () is a prefecture-level city in the east of Yunnan province, China, bordering Guizhou province to the east and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region to the southeast; thus, it was called "Key between Yunnan and Guizhou" () and "Throat of Yu ...
,
Yunnan
Yunnan , () is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in Southwest China, the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is ...
, 419 million years ago.
[Zhu, Min, et al. "A Silurian maxillate placoderm illuminates jaw evolution." Science 354.6310 (2016): 334-336]
/ref>
Specimens and taxonomy
The holotype and paratype of ''Q. rostrata'' are two exquisitely preserved specimens both featuring a domed cranium and a curved rostrum presenting a "dolphin-like profile."Entelognathus
''Entelognathus primordialis'' (“primordial complete jaw”) is a maxillate placoderm from the late Silurian (Ludlow epoch) of Qujing, Yunnan, 419 million years ago.
A team led by Min Zhu of the Academy of Sciences' Institute of Vertebrate Pa ...
'', ''Janusiscus
''Janusiscus schultzei'' is an extinct gnathostome vertebrate dating from the Early Devonian period in Siberia, approximately 415 million years ago. It may be the sister group of the last common ancestor of Chondrichthyes
Chondrichthyes (; ...
'' and the crown gnathostomes (i.e., bony and cartilaginous fishes and their descendants).[
]
Evolutionary significance
''Qilinyu rostrata'', together with ''Entelognathus'', demonstrates additional evidence that modern gnathostomes evolved from placoderms.[Long, John A. "The first jaws." Science 354.6310 (2016): 280-281.]
See also
* ''Entelognathus
''Entelognathus primordialis'' (“primordial complete jaw”) is a maxillate placoderm from the late Silurian (Ludlow epoch) of Qujing, Yunnan, 419 million years ago.
A team led by Min Zhu of the Academy of Sciences' Institute of Vertebrate Pa ...
''
* ''Bianchengichthys
''Bianchengichthys'' is an extinct genus of maxillate placoderm fish from the late Silurian Period. Its fossils have been recovered from Yunnan Province, China, and it is represented by only one species: ''Bianchengichthys micros''.
Descript ...
''
* ''Silurolepis
''Silurolepis platydorsalis'' is an extinct species of Silurian-aged "maxillate" placoderm that has been described from (mostly) articulated remains. Although it has been known for several years, it was finally described by Zhang, et al., in ...
''
References
External links
- Qilinyu rostrata: Silurian Fish from China Sheds Light on Jaw Evolution
* ttp://www.nature.com/news/fish-fossil-upends-scientists-view-of-jaw-evolution-1.20848 - Fish fossil upends scientists’ view of jaw evolution
Placoderm genera
Silurian fish of Asia
Prehistoric animals of China
Placodermi enigmatic taxa
Paleontology in Yunnan
Transitional fossils
Fossil taxa described in 2016
2016 in China
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