Saivodus Explained

Saivodus is an extinct genus of ctenacanthiform fish that existed in early Mississippian of the Carboniferous period. Fossils have been found in Ireland, Scotland, England, Belgium, Morocco, and the United States. Teeth assigned to that genus are also known from the Permian (Leonardian) Kaibab Formation.^[1]

Taxonomy

Saivodus was erected in 2006. The single species belonging to this genus was formerly included in the unrelated genus Cladodus.^[2]

Description

Saivodus is the largest known member of its group measuring 4m-5mm (13feet-16feetm) or more in total body length, possibly even up to 6m-7mm (20feet-23feetm), based on individual teeth about 3cm (01inches) or more in length.^{[3] [4]} The shape of the teeth suggest it targeted soft-bodied prey.^[5]

Notes and References

1. Hodnett . John-Paul M. . Elliott . David K. . Olson . Tom J. . Wittke . James H. . 2012 . Ctenacanthiform sharks from the Permian Kaibab Formation, northern Arizona . Historical Biology . en . 24 . 4 . 381–395 . 10.1080/08912963.2012.683193 . 85332499 . 0891-2963.
2. Duffin . C.J. . Ginter . M. . Comments on the selachian genus Cladodus Agassiz, 1843 . Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology . 2006 . 26 . 2 . 253–266 . 10.1671/0272-4634(2006)26[253:COTSGC]2.0.CO;2.
3. Hodnett. J.-P.M.. Tweet. J.S.. Santucci. V.L.. 2022. The occurrence of fossil cartilaginous fishes (Chondrichthyes) within the parks and monuments of the National Park Service. New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science Bulletin. 90. 183–208.
4. Engelman . Russell K. . 2023 . A Devonian Fish Tale: A New Method of Body Length Estimation Suggests Much Smaller Sizes for Dunkleosteus terrelli (Placodermi: Arthrodira) . Diversity . en . 15 . 3 . 318 . 10.3390/d15030318 . 1424-2818 . free .
5. News: Katz . B. . Jaw of 330-Million-Year-Old Shark Discovered in Kentucky Cave . February 4, 2020.