Robustichthys is an extinct genus of ray-finned fish from the Middle Triassic period, contains only one species R. luopingensis.[1][2] It belonged to the clade Halecomorphi, which were once diverse during the Mesozoic Era, but which are today represented by only a single species, the bowfin. Halecomorphs are holosteans, a clade which first appeared in the fossil record during the Triassic.[3]
| Robustichthys Temporal range:
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| Fossil specimens, (A) IVPP V18568 (holotype), (B) IVPP V20416 | |
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| Reconstruction | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Clade: | Halecomorphi |
| Order: | †Ionoscopiformes |
| Genus: | †Robustichthys Xu et al., 2014 |
| Type species | |
| †Robustichthys luopingensis Xu et al., 2014
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Description
editRobustichthys is described from Anisian Guanling Formation, Luoping, Yunnan, China. It is the oldest member of Ionoscopiformes, an order within Halecomorphi.[1] The largest specimen reaches length about 36 cm (1.18 ft), which makes it the largest holostean fish in the Middle Triassic.[2]
References
edit- ^ a b Xu, Guang-Hui; Zhao, Li-Jun; Coates, Michael I. (May 2014). "The oldest ionoscopiform from China sheds new light on the early evolution of halecomorph fishes". Biology Letters. 10 (5): 20140204. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2014.0204. ISSN 1744-9561. PMC 4046378. PMID 24872460.
- ^ a b Xu, Guang-Hui (2019-06-24). "Osteology and phylogeny of Robustichthys luopingensis, the largest holostean fish in the Middle Triassic". PeerJ. 7: e7184. doi:10.7717/peerj.7184. ISSN 2167-8359. PMC 6596411. PMID 31275762.
- ^ López-Arbarello, Adriana; Sferco, Emilia (March 2018). "Neopterygian phylogeny: the merger assay". Royal Society Open Science. 5 (3): 172337. Bibcode:2018RSOS....572337L. doi:10.1098/rsos.172337. PMC 5882744. PMID 29657820.
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