Ptychodus
Ptychodus (from Greek: πτυχή ptyche 'fold' and Greek: ὀδούς odoús 'tooth') is a genus of extinct durophagous (shell-crushing) sharks from the Late Cretaceous. Fossils of Ptychodus teeth are found in many Late Cretaceous marine sediments worldwide. Numerous species have been described. The youngest remains date to around 85 million years ago. A large number of remains have been found in the former Western Interior Seaway. A 2016 publication found that Ptychodus are likely true sharks belonging to Selachimorpha, rather than hybodonts or batoids as previously thought. Their life history coincides with the typical life of many other large sharks: they lived relatively long lives and were slow growing and produced large offspring and small litters.
Ptychodus Temporal range: Early-Late Cretaceous | |
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Lower jaw of Ptychodus sp. | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Chondrichthyes |
Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
Family: | †Ptychodontidae |
Genus: | †Ptychodus Agassiz, 1837 |
Type species | |
Ptychodus latissimus Agassiz, 1835 | |
Other species | |
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