Lepisosteiform fish (Holostei) ganoid scales from the middle jurassic deposits of Ukraine

Abstract

Gars (Lepisosteiformes) flourished in epicontinental seas throughout the world during the second half of Mesozoic and early Cenozoic. Cretaceous and Paleogene remains of these fishes are common in Europe while their Jurassic fossils are still relatively scarce. Here we re-describe in detail a series of ganoid scales from the latest Middle Jurassic (Callovian) deposits of Pekari (Cherkasy Region, Ukraine). These fossils were identified by Professor O. S. Rogovich in 1861 as those that belong to Lepidotus mantellii and L. fittoni. The referral of these scales to a certain species should be considered with caution because the described material lacks characters sufficient for identification it even to the genus or family. We consider to identify these fossils as Lepisosteiformes gen. et sp. indet. An overview of currently known Jurassic occurrences of lepisosteiform fishes is also presented in the paper.

Lepisosteiformes, museum collection, morphology, Callovian, Europe.