Heightingtonaspis is an extinct genus of primitive arthrodire placoderm fish from the Devonian period in Great Britain, and currently contains three species.

Heightingtonaspis
Temporal range: Early - Middle Devonian, 419–382 Ma
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Placodermi
Order: Arthrodira
Genus: Heightingtonaspis
White, 1969
Species
  • Heightingtonaspis anglica (Traquair, 1890) (type)
  • Heightingtonaspis clarkei (Eastman, 1907)
  • Heightingtonaspis willsi (White, 1961)
Synonyms

The type species Heightingtonaspis anglica was described by Ramsay Traquair in 1890, and was initially named Phlyctaenius anglicus. The holotype specimen NHMUK PAL PV P 29417 was first discovered on the surface at the Old Red Sandstone supergroup, Shropshire, England and the fossils were radiocarbon dated in situ to 416 million years old.[1][2][3] it has also been found in the Senni Beds of Wales.[3]

Heightingtonaspis clarkei was described by Charles R. Eastman in 1907, and was originally named Kujdanowiaspis clarkei. It was later revised and reassigned to the genus Heightingtonaspis by Denison in 1978.[1][4]

Heightingtonaspis willsi was described by White in 1961, and was originally named Kujdanowiaspis willsi, but was later reassigned to the genus Heightingtonaspis, which was created in 1969 by White.[4] H. willsi was discovered in the same location as H. anglica, in Shropshire, England.[1][2][3]

Heightingtonaspis is one of the more basal members of the order Arthrodira, as shown in the cladogram below:[5]

Eurycaraspis incilis

Lunaspis broilii

Arthrodira
Actinolepidoidei
Phlyctaeniina


References

edit
  1. ^ a b c Robert Denison. (1978). Placodermi. In H.-P. Schultze (ed.), Handbook of Palaeoichthyology 2:1-128
  2. ^ a b Dineley D. L., Metcalfe S. J. (1999). Chapter 4. Early Devonian fossil fishes sites of the Welsh Borders, Fossil Fishes of Great Britain, 2731
  3. ^ a b c White, E.I. (1969). The deepest vertebrate fossil and other arctolepid fishes. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 1(3): 293-310
  4. ^ a b Dupret, Vincent (2010). "Revision of the genus Kujdanowiaspis Stensiö, 1942 (Placodermi, Arthrodira, "Actinolepida") from the Lower Devonian of Podolia (Ukraine)". Geodiversitas. 32 (1): 5–63. doi:10.5252/g2010n1a1. S2CID 129505974.
  5. ^ Dupret, V.; Zhu, M. I. N.; Wang, J. N. Q. (2009). "The morphology of Yujiangolepis liujingensis (Placodermi, Arthrodira) from the Pragian of Guangxi (south China) and its phylogenetic significance" (PDF). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 157: 70. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2009.00519.x.