Cavenderichthys is an extinct genus of prehistoric freshwater ray-finned fish from the Late Jurassic. It contains a single species, C. talbragarensis from the Talbragar Fish beds of New South Wales, Australia.[1]

Cavenderichthys
Temporal range: Tithonian, ~151 Ma
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Family: Orthogonikleithridae
Genus: Cavenderichthys
Arratia, 1997
Species:
C. talbragarensis
Binomial name
Cavenderichthys talbragarensis
(Woodward, 1895)
Synonyms
  • Leptolepis talbragarensis

Initially considered a basal teleost of uncertain taxonomic identity, it was then placed in the family Luisiellidae, and later as a member of Orthogonikleithridae, alongside Leptolepides, Orthogonikleithrus and Waldmanichthys.[2][3]

Fossil remains of Cavenderichthys are common in the Talbragar beds, including both full-body fossils and otoliths. Fossil otoliths are found associated with body fossils, isolated on their own, and even preserved within the coprolites of other taxa, suggesting it was an ecologically important genus.[4]

Life restoration of Cavenderichthys (bottom) with Uarbryichthys (top)

References

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  1. ^ Bean, L. B. (2021). "Revision of the Mesozoic freshwater fish clade Archaeomaenidae". Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology. 45 (2): 217–259. doi:10.1080/03115518.2021.1937700. S2CID 237518065.
  2. ^ L. B. Bean. "The leptolepid fish Cavenderichthys talbragarensis (Woodward, 1895) from the Talbragar Fish Bed (Late Jurassic) near Gulgong, New South Wales | Western Australian Museum". museum.wa.gov.au. Retrieved 2024-05-06.
  3. ^ Bean, Lynne B.; Arratia, Gloria (2020-01-02). "Anatomical revision of the Australian teleosts Cavenderichthys talbragarensis and Waldmanichthys koonwarri impacting on previous phylogenetic interpretations of teleostean relationships". Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology. 44 (1): 121–159. doi:10.1080/03115518.2019.1666921. ISSN 0311-5518.
  4. ^ Schwarzhans, Werner W.; Murphy, Timothy D.; Frese, Michael (2018-11-02). "Otoliths in situ in the stem teleost Cavenderichthys talbragarensis (Woodward, 1895), otoliths in coprolites, and isolated otoliths from the Upper Jurassic of Talbragar, New South Wales, Australia". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 38 (6): e1539740. doi:10.1080/02724634.2018.1539740. ISSN 0272-4634.
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