Belantsea had a large, lobe-shaped fin on its ventral side, right behind the mouth. I believe that this may have helped Belantsea steer. Even though Belantsea could steer and move very well, it probably could not move very fast because of its shape, which was not hydrodynamic.
Belantsea had large teeth probably used to crush and eat hard-shelled animals such as corals and sponges. Fossils of Belantsea have been found in Montana and reach 2 feet in length. Fossils of Belantsea are rare.
References:
http://www.sju.edu/research/bear_gulch/pages_fish_species/Belantsea_montana.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belantsea
Paleo Sharks: Survival of the Strangest by Timothy J. Bradley
That really doesn't look very hydrodynamic. But maybe working its teeth on all that coral helped keep them sharp. That's quite a mouth!
ReplyDeleteIt looks a little like a frogfish:
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frogfish
Hi Art,
ReplyDeleteMy name is Conrad. I am four and a half years old. I like Arthropods that lived before dimetrodon. I am trying to find out the name of a prehistoric lizard that doesn't fly. I think it ate the spiders that died during a forest fire before the dinosaurs lived. The lizard that I am thinking of is very interesting. What is your favorite prehistoric creature? Thank you for your blog.
Hi Conrad,
ReplyDeleteThat could be Petrolacosaurus. It lived in the Carboniferous period.
I have a lot of favorite prehistoric creatures, and some of them of are: Tullimonstrum, Opabinia, Wiwaxia, and Gonioceras.
Thanks for reading my blog!