Fish!

As you all know, very little has been written about the dinosaur fossils from the Almond formation. Moreover, practically nothing (to my knowledge) has been published on the non-dinosaur vertebrates from the formation. Previously, we gave you a sneak peak of one of the first crocodile fossils recovered from the formation. Well, we also found the first fresh-water fish from the Almond formation. Below is a photograph of an associated skeleton of a large (~2 meter long) beast which is closely related to the modern Bowfin, a fish with a thickly armored skull and long, sharp teeth. In addition to these vertebrae, we also secured a bowfin jaw and parts of a skull from two other sites. As we find more of this creature we hope to learn if it belongs to an already known species of bowfin (of the extinct genus Melvius) or a new species. Thank you for your support. We are slowly, bit by bit, turning back the hands of time. There is more to come.

-Ethan

 

Associated vertebrae forming a portion of the spinal column of a large (~2m long) bowfin (Amiidae) fish, the first fish known from the lower portion of the formation.