Goslinophis
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| Goslinophis Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Fossil - at Museo di storia naturale di Verona | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Anguilliformes |
| Family: | Ophichthidae |
| Genus: | †Goslinophis Blot, 1981 |
| Species: | †G. acuticaudus |
| Binomial name | |
| †Goslinophis acuticaudus (de Zigno, 1874 ex Agassiz, 1835) | |
Goslinophis is an extinct genus of marine snake eel known the Eocene of Europe. It contains a single species, G. acuticaudus from the Early Eocene-aged Monte Bolca site of Italy.[1][2][3] It shares some similarities with the closely-related modern genus Echelus, and may potentially be synonymous with it.[4]
The species was first figured in 1796 by Giovanni Serafino Volta, who identified it as a fossil specimen of "Muraena ophis", the modern spotted snake eel. In 1835, Louis Agassiz identified it as a distinct species, naming it Ophisurus acuticaudus, but without a proper description, leaving it a nomen nudum.[5] The species was officially described by de Zigno in 1874, using Agassiz's name. In 1981, Blot moved the species to its own genus, Goslinophis.[4]
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