Monday, December 14, 2020

Priscacara serrata Fish Fossil

 


Above is an image of a fish fossil called Priscacara serrata (Cope, 1877). This fish fossil dates to the Eocene Epoch between 54.8 and 33.7 million years ago. It was found Fossil Lake, Wyoming, USA. The genus Priscacara was named by Edward Drinker Cope (1840-1897) in 1877. It is an extinct perch like fish.

The fossil was on display in the Evolving Planet section of The Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago Illinois, USA as of August 2020. Accession number is PF12571. They have an extensive collection of Fossil Lake fish fossils at the exhibit including holotypes.

The Smithsonian has a 3D scan of one of these fossil fish. If display window does not work go this this link: https://3d.si.edu/object/3d/priscacara-serrata-cope:b6bc8ca2-47b5-48c7-8aba-75c1fb97fbab