Eomyctophum
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| Eomyctophum Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
| Fossil specimen of E. cozlae (bottom) with Sarmatella (top) from Romania | |
| Artistic reconstruction of Eomyctophum mainardii | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Myctophiformes |
| Family: | Myctophidae |
| Subfamily: | †Eomyctophinae |
| Genus: | †Eomyctophum Daniltshenko, 1947 |
| Type species | |
| †Eomyctophum koraensis Daniltshenko, 1947 | |
| Species | |
| |
Eomyctophum ("dawn Myctophum") is an extinct genus of lanternfish that inhabited the Peri-Tethys region and later the Paratethys Sea from the Eocene to the Oligocene.[1] Its remains are known from throughout eastern Europe & western Asia in both the Caucasus and Carpathians. Fossils of this genus comprises both articulated skeletons and otoliths suggesting it was a particularly common genus of fish.[2][3]
It is the only member of the extinct subfamily Eomyctophinae, although Eokrefftia may also belong in it.[4] The earliest known member of the genus was identified from the Early Eocene of Italy in 2025, millions of years earlier and further west than the other species.[5]