Biology:Dunkleosteoidea

Short description: Extinct superfamily of fishes

Dunkleosteoidea Temporal range: Late Emsian to Late Famennian, ~393.3–358.9 Ma PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N
Dunkleosteus terrelli skull, Queensland Museum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	†Placodermi
Order:	†Arthrodira
Suborder:	†Brachythoraci
Clade:	†Eubrachythoraci
Clade:	†Pachyosteomorphi
Superfamily:	†Dunkleosteoidea Vezina, 1990
Contained taxa
Dunkleosteidae Dunkleosteus Eastmanosteus Golshanichthys Kiangyousteus Westralichthys? Xiangshuiosteus? Panxiosteidae? Heterosteidae Heterosteus Yinosteus

Dunkleosteoidea is an extinct superfamily of arthrodire placoderms that lived during the Devonian period. The gigantic apex predator Dunkleosteus terrelli is the best known member of this group.

Phylogeny

Eubrachythoraci is divided into the clades Coccosteomorphi and Pachyosteomorphi, the latter of which can be further sub-divided into Aspinothoracidi and Dunkleosteoidea. Dunkleosteoidea was then considered to consist of the two sister families Dunkleosteidae and Panxiosteidae.

However, the 2016 Zhu et al. phylogenetic study using a larger morphological dataset recovered Panxiosteidae well outside of Dunkleosteoidea, leaving the status of Dunkleosteidae as a clade grouping separate from Dunkleosteoidea in doubt, as shown in the cladogram below:

Eubrachythoraci

Coccosteomorphi Coccosteoidea Coccosteidae     Millerosteus minor     Coccosteus cuspidatus         Dickosteus threiplandi     Watsonosteus fletti     Protitanichthys rockportensis       Panxiosteidae   Plourdosteus canadensis     Panxiosteus ocullus     Janiosteus timanicus       Incisoscutoidea   Harrytoombsia elegans       Torosteus tuberculatus     Torosteus pulchellus         Mcnamaraspis kaprios       Compagopiscis croucheri     Trematosteus fontanellus   Camuropiscidae     Incisoscutum ritchiei     Incisoscutum sarahae         Rolfosteus canningensis       Tubonasus lennardensis       Fallacosteus turneri       Camuropiscis laidlawi     Latocamurus coulthardi                     Pachyosteomorphi   Rhachiosteus pterygiatus     Dunkleosteoidea   Eastmanosteus calliaspis         Eastmanosteus pustulosus     Kiangyousteus yohii         Golshanichthys asiatica       Westralichthys uwagedensis         Dunkleosteus raveri     Dunkleosteus terrelli         Dunkleosteus amblyodoratus   Heterostiidae   Heterosteus ingens     Yinosteus major                 Aspinothoracidi   Tapinosteus heintzi         Bullerichthys fascidens       Kendrickichthys cavernosus     Bruntonichthys multidens           Dinichthys herzeri       Hadrosteus rapax       Gorgonichthys clarki   Selenosteidae   Heintzichthys gouldii     Pachyosteus bulla     Gymnotrachelus hydei     Stenosteus angustopectus     Brachyosteus dietrichi       Melanosteus occitanus     Rhinosteus parvulus

References

Wikidata ☰ Q16745499 entry