A team of paleontologists from Morocco have found fossil fragments of a previously undescribed genus and species of a simoriiform shark that swam in Earth’s oceans 370 million years ago.
He had a slender body that was about 13 inches long, with very large eyes, and specialized jaws.
“The excellently preserved fossil we have examined is a unique specimen,” said Christian Klug, a paleontologist at the Paläontologisches Institut und Museum at the University of Zurich and a co-author of the work published in the journal Communications Biology.
One of the curiosities they found is that, unlike humans, the two sides of the lower jaw were not fused in the center, allowing them to turn both jaws outward.
“Through this rotation, the younger, larger and sharper teeth, which generally pointed towards the inside of the mouth, were placed in an upright position,” adds Linda Frey, co-author of the work. “This made it easier for the animals to impale their prey.” And it is that the teeth thus pushed the prey further towards the bottom of the oral space when the jaws closed.
We believe that the described type of jaw joint played an important role in the Paleozoic era, “ the authors note.” However, with more and more frequent tooth replacement, it became obsolete over time and was replaced by jaws. often peculiar and more complex than today’s sharks and rays. “
Referencia: . Frey et al. 2020. A symmoriiform from the Late Devonian of Morocco demonstrates a derived jaw function in ancient chondrichthyans. Commun Biol 3, 681; doi: 10.1038/s42003-020-01394-2
