Tristychius
| Tristychius Temporal range: Early Carboniferous,
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| Restoration of Tristychius | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Family: | †Tristychiidae |
| Genus: | †Tristychius Agassiz, 1837[1] |
| Type species | |
| †Tristychius arcuatus Agassiz, 1837
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Tristychius is an extinct genus of shark from the Carboniferous period (Visean). Fossils of T. arcuatus, the type and only species, including fin spines have been found in Scotland.
Tristychius was a small shark, about 60 centimetres (2 ft) long. It had a well-developed upturned caudal fin, similar to that of many modern sharks. Physically it may have resembled a modern dogfish. Tristychius also had spikes attached to the bases of its dorsal fins, probably for protection against predators.[2]
References
- ^ L. Agassiz. 1837. Recherches Sur Les Poissons Fossiles. Tome III (livr. 8-9). Imprimérie de Petitpierre, Neuchatel viii-72 [M. Carrano/M. Carrano]
- ^ Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 27. ISBN 978-1-84028-152-1.
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