Coelacanth

 
 Diplurus newarki (Bryant, 1934)
 Late Triassic
 Lockatong Formation
  North Bergen, New Jersey

Age -  Late Triassic - Occurrence - Location Specific

 

I’ve only collected a few times in northern NJ and what success I’ve had can be attributed to the advice of the friends I’ve collected with or just luck. With this in mind I’ll keep be keeping the verbiage to a minimum and concentrate on .some of my finds.
  Sometimes called the “Living than Fossil” coelacanths are best known for their fleshy "lobed" or limb-like fins that are internally supported by bone. These fish were thought to be extinct until a living coelacanth was discovered off the coast of Southeast Africa in 1938.
 
Diplurus newarki is a fresh water coelacanth and small individuals may be found in high concentrations in certain layers of the Lockatong Formation but the preservation can be poor. Finding a complete fish in good condition can be a challenge.   

 


 

Diplurus newarki  9 cm (professionally prepped)
Excellent preservation on this specimen. This piece of shale was encrusted in mud and sat for over a week until I got
around to washing the mud off.
 


 

Click on the individual sections for a close up.


 


Before and after prepping images.

 



 


Isolated fins, skulls and bone are common. Most of the fish are partials or just faint impressions.
This fish is almost complete with the skull on the left partially covered and the tail plainly visible.
. This example is an impression. 

 


 


Isolated skulls are common, a few scales are visible directly behind the skull (black arrow)


 

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