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Davichthys is an extinct genus of prehistoric marine ray-finned fish related to modern ladyfish. It is known from the Late Cretaceous of southern Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. It is one of the earliest known elopids.[1][2][3][4]
| Davichthys Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Specimen of D. gardneri | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Elopiformes |
| Family: | Elopidae |
| Genus: | †Davichthys Forey, 1973 |
| Species | |
| |
The following species are known:
- †D. dubius (Davis, 1887) - Late Santonian of Lebanon (Sahel Alma) (=Osmeroides dubius Davis, 1887)
- †D. gardneri Forey, 1973 - Late Cenomanian of Lebanon (Sannine Formation)
- †D. lacostei (Arambourg, 1954) - Late Cenomanian of Italy (Scaglia Variegata Alpina Formation, Scaglia Bianca Formation) including Sicily (Argille Varicolori Formation), and Morocco (Jbel Tselfat) (=Holcolepis lacostei Arambourg, 1954)
This fish was usually less than 15 centimeters long, and its appearance must have been very similar to that of the modern Elops . Like the latter, Davichthys had an elongated body with an oval cross-section, slightly flattened laterally. The eyes were rather large, while the mouth had robust jaws. The dorsal fin and the anal fin were rather small; the ventral fins were inserted far back, under the dorsal. The pectoral fins were placed low on the body. The caudal fin was very broad and strongly forked.[2]
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