Squatiniformes is an order of sharks belonging to Squalomorphii. It contains only a single living genus Squatina, commonly known as angelsharks. The oldest genus of the order, Pseudorhina is known from the Late Jurassic of Europe.[1] Three other genera, Cretasquatina, Cretascyllium and Parasquatina are known from Cretaceous fossils from North America and Europe,[2][3] though the placement of Parasquatina in the order has been questioned.[1] All living and extinct members of the order share a similar body morphology[2] with a highly flattened body with enlarged pectoral and pelvic fins suggestive of a bottom-dwelling ambush predator ecology.[4] Teeth have been assigned to the modern genus from the Late Jurassic onwards, but the actual genus assignment of many of these species is unclear.[2] The earliest records that can be assigned with confidence to the modern genus are known from the Early Cretaceous (Aptian) of England.[1]
| Squatiniformes Temporal range:
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|---|---|
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| Squatina dumeril | |
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| Fossil of Pseudorhina from the Late Jurassic of Germany | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Superorder: | Squalomorphi |
| Order: | Squatiniformes Compagno, 1973 |
| Families | |
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References
edit- ^ a b c Klug, Stefanie; Kriwet, Jürgen (2013). "Node age estimations and the origin of angel sharks, Squatiniformes (Neoselachii, Squalomorphii)". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 11 (1): 91–110. Bibcode:2013JSPal..11...91K. doi:10.1080/14772019.2012.674066. ISSN 1477-2019.
- ^ a b c Maisey, John G.; Ehret, Dana J.; Denton, John S.S. (2020-06-16). "A New Genus of Late Cretaceous Angel Shark (Elasmobranchii; Squatinidae), with Comments on Squatinid Phylogeny". American Museum Novitates (3954): 1–29. doi:10.1206/3954.1. ISSN 0003-0082. S2CID 219700378.
- ^ Guinot, Guillaume; Underwood, Charlie J.; Cappetta, Henri; Ward, David J. (2012-05-11). "Squatiniformes (Chondrichthyes, Neoselachii) from the Late Cretaceous of southern England and northern France with redescription of the holotype of Squatina cranei Woodward, 1888". Palaeontology. 55 (3): 529–551. Bibcode:2012Palgy..55..529G. doi:10.1111/j.1475-4983.2012.01140.x. ISSN 0031-0239. S2CID 129829100.
- ^ López-Romero, Faviel A.; Stumpf, Sebastian; Pfaff, Cathrin; Marramà, Giuseppe; Johanson, Zerina; Kriwet, Jürgen (2020-07-28). "Evolutionary trends of the conserved neurocranium shape in angel sharks (Squatiniformes, Elasmobranchii)". Scientific Reports. 10 (1): 12582. Bibcode:2020NatSR..1012582L. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-69525-7. ISSN 2045-2322. PMC 7387474. PMID 32724124.