Galeocerdo Explained

Galeocerdo is a genus of ground shark. Only a single species, G. cuvier, the tiger shark is extant.^[1] The earliest fossils date back to the early Eocene epoch, (Ypresian), around 56–47.8 Million years ago.^[2] While historically considered a member of the requiem shark family Carcharhinidae, it is currently considered to be the only member of the family Galeocerdonidae.^[3] While this genus was historically considered diverse, including 21 extinct species, morphometric analysis conducted in 2021 suggested that the diversity of the genus included only 5 extinct species (including the Eocene †G. clarkensis and †G. eaglesomei, Oligocene-late Miocene †G. aduncus, Miocene †G. mayumbensis, and Pliocene †G. capellinii) much lower than previously assumed. The oldest fossils of the extant G. cuvier date to the middle Miocene.

Species

Species historically considered valid in the genus Galeocerdo include:^[4]

• †Galeocerdo aduncus
• †Galeocerdo alabamensis
• †Galeocerdo clarkensis
• Galeocerdo cuvier
• †Galeocerdo denticulatus
• †Galeocerdo eaglesomi
• †Galeocerdo gibberulus
• †Galeocerdo latidens
• †Galeocerdo mayumbensis^[5]
• †Galeocerdo minor
• †Galeocerdo mixtus
• †Galeocerdo productus

Notes and References

1. Web site: iNaturalist.org..
2. Türtscher . Julia . López-Romero . Faviel A. . Jambura . Patrick L. . Kindlimann . René . Ward . David J. . Kriwet . Jürgen . November 2021 . Evolution, diversity, and disparity of the tiger shark lineage Galeocerdo in deep time . Paleobiology . en . 47 . 4 . 574–590 . 10.1017/pab.2021.6 . 0094-8373 . 7612061 . 34866693.
3. Pollerspöck, J.; Straube, N. Bibliography Database of Living/Fossil Sharks, Rays and Chimaeras (Chondrichtyes: Elasmobranchii, Holocephali)—List of Valid Extant Species; List of Described Extant Species; Statistic, World Wide Web Electronic Publication, Version 10/2021; ISSN: 2195-6499. Available online: www.shark-references.com (accessed on 23 November 2021).
4. Web site: Fossilworks: Galeocerdo. fossilworks.org. 17 December 2021.
5. Web site: Shark Teeth - Galeocerdo mayumbensis Fossils. www.blackriverfossils.org. 2016-04-01. https://web.archive.org/web/20160529145933/http://www.blackriverfossils.org/Fossils/SharkTeeth/Galeocerdomayumbensis/tabid/53/pt/2/Filter/127n245/Default.aspx. 2016-05-29. dead.