A new genus and species of marine catfishes (Siluriformes; Ariidae) from the upper Eocene Birket Qarun Formation, Wadi El-Hitan, Egypt.

ABSTRACT: Wadi El-Hitan, the UNESCO World Heritage Site, of the Fayum Depression in the northeast part of the Western Desert of Egypt, has produced a remarkable collection of Eocene vertebrates, in particular the fossil whales from which it derives its name. Here we describe a new genus and species of marine catfishes (Siluriformes; Ariidae), Qarmoutus hitanensis, from the base of the upper Eocene Birket Qarun Formation, based on a partial neurocranium including the complete left side, partial right dentary, left suspensorium, two opercles, left pectoral girdle and spine, nuchal plates, first and second dorsal spines, Weberian apparatus and a disassociated series of abdominal vertebrae. All of the elements belong to the same individual and some of them were found articulated. Qarmoutus gen. nov. is

SUBMITTER: El-Sayed SE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5332075 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature