Pirodus
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Pirodus Temporal range: Carboniferous | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Holocephali |
| Order: | †Eugeneodontiformes |
| Family: | †Caseodontidae |
| Genus: | †Pirodus |
| Species: | †P. conicus |
| Binomial name | |
| †Pirodus conicus Lebedev, 2001 | |
Pirodus (meaning 'Pirochi tooth') is an extinct genus of cartilaginous fish from the Carboniferous of Russia. It is classified as a member of the order Eugeneodontiformes and the family Caseodontidae. The genus includes a single species, P. conicus, which is known only from a single, incomplete fossil of its teeth. These teeth were fused together and sat along the midline of the jaw, and were surrounded by fused dermal denticles.
The holotype and only specimen of Pirodus conicus was described by researcher Oleg Lebedev in a 2001 paper, and originated from the Shchurovo-Korobcheyevo Formation of Moscow Oblast, Russia. This locality has been dated to the Moscovian stage of the Carboniferous period. The holotype specimen is in the collection of the Paleontological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences and is catalogued as PIN 2804/328.[1][2]
The genus is named after the village of Пирочи (Pirochi), which is near where the only known specimen was found, combined with the Greek suffix ὀδούς or odoús, meaning 'tooth'. The name of the type and only species, P. conicus, is derived from the Latin conicus, and refers to the shape of its teeth.[2]
