SKATES AND RAYS
 

In addition to the sharks, the Class Chondrichthyes also contains a number of skates and rays.  In these animals, the pectoral fins are greatly enlarged to form "wings" that undulate gracefully during swimming. Skates and rays differ from sharks in having few scales and being generally adapted for feeding on bottom-dwelling animals.  Although skates may have small teeth, those of rays are plate-like and adapted for crushing prey. 
 

Sawfish Ischyrhiza mira	Sawfish Ischyrhiza mira	Extinct Sawfish Ptychotrygon sp.
Spine - Common	Oral Tooth - Micro	Spine -  Micro
Extinct Sawfish Ptychotrygon sp.	Eocene Sawfish Pristis sp.	Cow Nosed Rays Brachyrhizodus wichitaensis Rhombodus laevis
Micro	Uncommon	Very Common

Guitarfish Rhinobatos casieri	Guitarfish Pseudohypolophus mcnultyi	Whiptail stingray (female) Dasyatis sp.
Micro	Micro	Micro
Whiptail stingray (male)  Dasyatis sp	Cow Nose Ray Rhinoptera sp.	Eagle Ray Myliobatis sp.
Micro	Under Construction	Under Construction

RATFISH
subclass Holocephali

The class Chondrichthyes or cartilaginous fishes are divided into two subclasses: Elasmobranchii (sharks, rays and skates) and Holocephali (ratfish).  Holocephali may be the oldest fishes alive today. Their closest living relatives are sharks, though in evolutionary terms they branched off some 400 million years ago and have remained isolated ever since.

	Ratfish Ischyodus bifurcatus
	Common

THE BONEY FISHES

The bony fishes belong to the Class Osteichthyes, unlike sharks, skates and rays,
members of this Class posse a true boney skeleton. Osteichthyes account for about 96% of all fish species.
Fossils of the bony fishes in Monmouth County, NJ tend to be scrappy, normally limited to isolated teeth, bones and scales making identification difficult.
 

Subclass Actinopterygii
Ray fined fish.

CRETACEOUS
 

Of the Cretaceous boney fish fossils Enchodus petrosus is one of the largest and most abundant species found in New Jersey. Saber Toothed Herring Enchodus petrosus Enchodus gladiolus Enchodus ferox
	Enchodus petrosus Abundant

	Anomoeodus phaseolus
	Common

Billfish(?) Cylindracanthus sp.	Bonefish Paralbula casei	Hadrodus priscus
Micro	Micro	Micro
Bulldog Fish Xiphactinus sp.	Pachyrhizodus	Needle Fish Belonostomus sp.
Uncommon	Uncommon	Micro

TERTIARY
 

Mackerel Scomberomorus sp.	Tuna Thunnus sp.	Drum Fish Pogonias sp.
Micro	Uncommon	Micro
Three-tooth Puffer Triodon antiquus	Blackfish Tautoga sp.
	Micro

---

 

Subclass Crossopterygii
Lobe-finned fish
 

. It was widely believed that this entire subclass of fishes was extinct. Then in 1938, a living coelacanth  was discovered off the coast of Southeast Africa.		Diplurus newarki Coelacanth  Late Triassic  Lockatong Formation   North Bergen, New Jersey
Coelacanth  Diplurus newarki
Location Specific

---

 

Misc. Teleost Material

 

The Boney Fish Misc. Fossils	Fish Coprolites
Common	Common