5.8" Devonian Lobe-Finned Fish (Osteolepis) - Scotland

This is a 5.8" long specimen of the Devonian "Lobe-Finned" fish, Osteolepis macrolepidotus. It was collected from the Sandwick Fish Bed in the Old Red Sandstone in the Orkney Isles of Scotland. There is a partial fish near the tail of the Osteolepis. It comes with an acrylic display stand.

Osteolepis ('bone scale') is an extinct genus of lobe-finned fish from the Devonian period. It lived in the ancient Lake Orcadie of northeastern Scotland. Osteolepis averaged about 20 centimeters (7.9 inches) long, and was covered with large, square scales. The scales and plates on its head were covered in a thin layer of spongy, bony material called cosmine. This layer contained canals connected to sensory cells deeper in the skin and ended in pores on the surface: they were probably for sensing vibrations in the water.

Artist's reconstruction of Osteolepis. Creative Commons, by Nobu Tamura (http://spinops.blogspot.com)
Artist's reconstruction of Osteolepis. Creative Commons, by Nobu Tamura (http://spinops.blogspot.com)


Osteolepis was a rhipidistian with a number of features in common with tetrapods (land-dwelling vertebrates and their descendants). They were likely close to the base of the tetrapod family tree.

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DETAILS
SPECIES
Osteolepis macrolepidotus
LOCATION
Cruaday Hill Quarry, Orkney Isles, Scotland
FORMATION
Old Red Sandstone
SIZE
5.8" long (straightline) on 8.5 x 3.1" limestone
CATEGORY
SUB CATEGORY
ITEM
#177082
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