View source for Biology:Pteraspis

{{Short description|Extinct genus of jawless fishes}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| fossil_range = [[Earth:Lochkovian|Lochkovian]]-[[Earth:Eifelian|Eifelian]]<br>~{{Fossil range|416|386}}
| image = Pteraspis rostrata restoration.jpg
| image_caption = Restoration of ''P. rostrata''
| taxon = Pteraspis
| authority = Kner, 1847
| type_species = '''''[[Biology:Cephalaspis|Cephalaspis]] rostrata'''''
| type_species_authority = Agassiz, 1835
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = 
* ''P. rostrata'' <small>(Agassiz, 1835)</small>
* ''P. dixoni'' <small>(White, 1938)</small>
* ''P. mitchelli'' <small>(Powrie, 1864)</small>
}}

'''''Pteraspis''''' (from {{lang-el|πτερόν}} {{transl|el|pteron}} 'wing' or 'fin' and {{lang-el|ἀσπίς}} {{transl|el|aspís}} 'shield') is an extinct genus of [[Biology:Pteraspidiformes|pteraspidid]] [[Biology:Heterostraci|heterostracan]] [[Biology:Agnatha|agnatha]]n [[Biology:Vertebrate|vertebrate]] that lived from the [[Earth:Lochkovian|Lochkovian]] to [[Earth:Eifelian|Eifelian]] epochs of the [[Earth:Devonian|Devonian]] period in what is now Brazil ([[Earth:Eifelian|Eifelian]] Maecuru Formation), Britain ([[Earth:Lochkovian|Lochkovian]] Ditton Group), Ukraine (Lochkovian Ivane Suite, [[Earth:Pragian|Pragian]] Babin Sandstone) and Belgium.{{cn|date=February 2021}}

== Description ==
[[File:Pteraspis rostrata 7.JPG|thumb|left|Fossil of ''P. rostrata'']]
[[File:Estonian Museum of Natural History - Pteraspis.png|thumb|left|Reconstruction of ''Pteraspis'', [[Biology:Estonian Museum of Natural History|Estonian Museum of Natural History]]]]
Like other heterostracan fishes, ''Pteraspis'' had a protective armored plating covering the front of its body. Though lacking fins other than its lobed tail, it is thought to have been a good swimmer thanks to stiff, wing-like protrusions derived from the armoured plates over its gills. This, along with the horn-like [[Biology:Rostrum (anatomy)|rostrum]], made ''Pteraspis'' very streamlined in shape; a perfect quality for a good swimmer. ''Pteraspis'' also had some stiff spikes on its back, possibly an additional form of protection against predators. It is thought to have fed from shoals of [[Earth:Plankton|plankton]] just under the ocean surface,<ref name=EoDP>{{cite book |editor=Palmer, D.|year=1999 |title= The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals|publisher= Marshall Editions|location=London|page= 23|isbn= 1-84028-152-9}}</ref> and some records are found in association with marine fossils,<ref name="Lankester2009">{{Cite journal | last1 = Lankester | first1 = E. R. | title = I.—On a New Cephalaspis Discovered in America, etc | journal = Geological Magazine | volume = 7 | issue = 75 | pages = 397–399 | year = 1870 | doi = 10.1017/S0016756800209485 | bibcode = 1870GeoM....7..397L | s2cid = 140161565 | url = https://zenodo.org/record/2016030 }}</ref><ref name="White1938">{{Cite journal | last1 = White | first1 = E. I. | title = New Pteraspids from South Wales | journal = Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society | volume = 94 | issue = 1–4 | pages = 85–116 | year = 1938 | doi = 10.1144/GSL.JGS.1938.094.01-04.05 | s2cid = 130276490 }}</ref> while some others are found in [[Earth:Fresh water|freshwater]] environment.<ref>{{Cite thesis |title=An experimental morphological investigation into the hydrodynamics and locomotion of the Palaeozoic jawless vertebrates Poraspis, Errivaspis and Ateleaspis. |url=https://figshare.le.ac.uk/articles/thesis/An_experimental_morphological_investigation_into_the_hydrodynamics_and_locomotion_of_the_Palaeozoic_jawless_vertebrates_Poraspis_Errivaspis_and_Ateleaspis_/10089050/1 |publisher=University of Leicester |date=2009-07-03 |degree=thesis |language=en |first=Benjamin Evan |last=Davies}}</ref>

''Pteraspis'' grew to an estimated length of {{convert|20|cm|in}}.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q2268858}}

[[Category:Pteraspidiformes genera]]
[[Category:Lochkovian life]]
[[Category:Pragian life]]
[[Category:Emsian life]]



{{Sourceattribution|Pteraspis}}