Explore this animal in Size of Extinct Animals ↗
439 / Mesozoic
Saurichthys
Saurichthys curionii
A needle-like snout and slender body converged on modern barracudas.
View original image · 1600 × 1067- Time range
- About 242 million years ago
- Final stage
- Middle Triassic
- Geographic range
- Warm shallow sea · European Alps
01 / DEFINITION & ECOLOGY
What was Saurichthys?
Saurichthys (Saurichthys curionii) was an extinct organism known from About 242 million years ago, with a range in Warm shallow sea · European Alps.
Life and ecology
It accelerated through the water column and trapped fish and cephalopods in narrow jaws.
02 / DISAPPEARANCE
Why did Saurichthys disappear?
Triassic turnover among marine fishes is possible context; the cause of this species' disappearance is not established.
03 / EVIDENCE
How do scientists know about Saurichthys?
Complete skeletons preserve skull, scales, fins and stomach contents.
04 / SOURCES & FURTHER READING
Check the source record
Use the scientific name to compare taxonomy, occurrence records and the fossil record. Database coverage and classifications may differ.
05 / REVISION HISTORY
How has this record changed?
- Rewrote an extinction cause that presented environmental or faunal turnover as established; it is now given as context the record does not prove.
- Verified authoritative entity sources and added three responsive reconstruction sizes.
- Initial bilingual species record published.
06 / CORRECTIONS & ADDITIONS