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Scientists recently discovered that an ancient fossilized fish may be one of the top contenders for nature ’s most uttermost underbite .
When a researcher first unearthed the first known fossil of this Pisces in Poland in 1957 , he think it had a tenacious set of fin spines , leading to the alien - inspired nameAlienacanthus . But the new analysis divulge that these " spines " were in reality an immensely elongate gloomy jaw stud with tooth , giving this species the oldest — and one of the longest — underbites ever recorded , fit in to the subject field , which was published Wednesday ( Jan. 31 ) in the journalRoyal Society Open Science .
The large ancient fish Alienacanthus had a giant underbite.
" The newAlienacanthusfinds set the book straight about what this animal actually look like , as in it does n’t have a weird louver spine but a rather unique lower jaw , " lede study authorMelina Jobbins , a paleontologist at the University of Zürich in Switzerland , told Live Science in an electronic mail .
refer : Giant ancient fish that belike predate on human beings ' ancestors unearthed in South Africa
Alienacanthuslived during theDevonian period(419 million to 358.9 million age ago ) , when Earth ’s land was split up into two supercontinents . Since the initial uncovering ofAlienacanthus , several fossil specimens have been found in the mountains of what is now central Poland and Morocco , which were situated on the northeastern and the southerly coasts , respectively , when these ancient fish existed . The presence of the same species on both ends of this supercontinent suggests thatAlienacanthusmigrated across the sea , despite sea grade fluctuation , the young study ’s authors wrote inThe Conversation .
The fossilized skull ofAlienacanthus.Its bottom jaw, unfortunately, is broken in this specimen.
To learn more about the oddball Pisces , researcher await at two nearly pure skull discovered in the Anti - Atlas mountain reach of Morocco . They soon realized that the long protrusion jutting from the head ofAlienacanthuswas a lower jaw — and it was double the size of the individual ’s skull .
Alienacanthusis a placoderm , a group of armoured fish that includes some of the first remonstrate vertebrates . But unlike its placoderm brother , Alienacanthus ' upper jaws could move a shade severally of the skull , which help to accommodate its lengthy broken jaw , the team publish in The Conversation . " This fauna is so unequaled that the intact jaw chemical mechanism had to work a little otherwise to accommodate for the crushed jaws , " Jobbins tell Live Science .
The research worker comparedAlienacanthusto modernistic - day species with mismatched jaw , such as swordfish , to formulate three primary hypotheses for how these fish may have capitalized on their underbite : to trap living prey , to confuse or injure fair game , or to sieve through sediments in the sea basin .
" The most compelling to us is the first supposition , trap live quarry , which is based on the teeth , " Jobbins said . " The teeth pointing to the back prevent the prey from escaping the mouth once trapped . "
The top competition for the title of " world ’s bad underbite " is the New - day halfbeak ( Hemiramphidae ) , a family of tiny fishes with long , snoot - like jaws find in quick oceans and some estuary around the world .
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The Late Devonian period presented " literally jaw - dropping diversity in jaw form and proportions evolved , " analyse senior authorChristian Klug , an adjunct professor of paleontology at the University of Zürich , distinguish Live Science in an electronic mail . This include the huge , rod - like jaws of the filter - feederTitanichthys , he added .
Now that this " fin vertebral column " misadventure has been clear up , the researchers are studyingAlienacanthusto better translate its jaw mechanic and how the rest of its dead body looked .
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