An onychodont fish (Osteichthyes, Sarcopterygii) from the Early Devonian of China, and the evolution of the Onychodontiformes

Abstract

Although the superbly preserved specimens of Onychodus jandemarrai have greatly advanced our understanding of the Onychodontiformes, a primitive sarcopterygian group with large parasymphysial tooth whorls, the scarcity of the otoccipital material in the group hampers further morphological comparisons between onychodonts and other sarcopterygian groups. Here we report a new onychodont Qingmenodus yui gen. et sp. nov. from the Early Devonian (Pragian) of South China that comprises well-ossified otoccipital and upper and lower jaw material. As one of the oldest known onychodonts, Qingmenodus shows for the first time the nearly complete structure of the otoccipital in onychodonts and provides an additional basis to address the phylogenetic position of the group. Its elongated otic shelf exhibits the posterior shift of the attachment for the basicranial muscle as in coelacanths and sheds light on the feeding mechanism of onychodonts. Qingmenodus displays a mosaic of primitive and derived onychodont features. The phylogenetic analysis places Qingmenodus immediately basal to the clade comprising Onychodus and Grossius .