On the occurrence of Vinctifer ferrusquiai sp. nov. (Actinopterygii, Aspidorhynchiformes) in the Kimmeridgian (Late Jurassic) deposits near Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca, southern Mexico

Abstract

Vinctifer ferrusquiai sp. nov. is described in this paper. This aspidorhynchid fish was found in Kimmeridgian marine deposits of the Sabinal Formation, exposed in the Llano Yosobé, near Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca, Mexico. The single specimen of this species shows enough diagnostic characters to be included in the order Aspidorhynchiformes, the family Aspidorhynchidae, and the genus Vinctifer. These characters include an elongate rostrum consisting of the premaxillae fused and anteriorly elongated, forming a tube-like, as well as an preopercular sensory canal located close to the posterior edge of the preopercle. Other features are the lack of premaxilla, the development of a wide posterior expansion of the maxilla, and a stout triangular preopercle. A unique combination of characters supports the erection of this new species, whose ganoine on dermal bones of the head are strongly ornamented with tubercles and ridges, and the flank scales are entirely smooth and not serrated. This Jurassic record is the first indubitable pre-Cretaceous finding of Vinctifer, the oldest into the Hispanic Corridor, and the oldest in North America.