Vertebrate
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Acrodus lateralis, tooth, 4/UMK
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Acrodus lateralis Middle Triassic, Upper Muschelkalk (Ladinian), Upper Silesia, Poland A beautifully preserved tooth crown from the hybodont shark Acrodus lateralis. The teeth of this species are smaller than those of Acrodus gaillardoti, with more refined ornamentation. The delicate, yet distinct, branching ridges converge to a keel that runs the entire length of the tooth.…
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Palaeobates angustissimus, tooth, 13/LMK
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Palaeobates angustissimus Middle Triassic, Lower Gogolin Beds, Upper Silesia, Poland A tooth from another common shark from the Middle Triassic – Palaeobates angustissimus. These teeth measure usually no more than a few millimeters. This specimen is one of the largest in my collection. Palaeobates is another durophagous shark with dentition adapted for crushing hard prey.…
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Sauropterygia cf. Nothosaurus, dorsal rib, 12/LMK
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Sauropterygia cf. Nothosaurus, rib Middle Triassic, Lower Muschelkalk (Anisian), Gogolin Beds, Upper Silesia, Poland A dorsal rib proximal fragment from a marine reptile from the Sauropterygian group. It very likely belongs to cf. Nothosaurus. This is the most abundant taxa in the Silesian Muschelkalk deposits. Its size suggests an animal rather larger than Pachypleurosaurus. On…
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Parhybodus plicatilis, tooth, 3/UMK
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A specimen of a antero-lateral tooth of Parhybodus plicatilis.
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Pistosaurus longaevus, tooth, 2/UMK
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Pistosaurus longaevus Middle Triassic, Upper Muschelkalk (Ladinian), Upper Silesia, Poland Pistosaurus were an intermediate form (though not considered a direct ancestor) between Nothosaurus and Plesiosaurus. They were the first known reptiles to move by underwater flight. While nothosaurids moved primarily by twisting their trunks (like modern crocodiles), the movement of pistosaurids resembled the swimming of…
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Acrodus sp. lateral tooth, 11/LMK
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Acrodus sp. Middle Triassic, Lower Gogolin Beds, Upper Silesia, Poland A beautiful specimen of a shark tooth from the genus Acrodus, with its crown and root preserved. The dentition of these durophagous sharks was heterodont—meaning the teeth varied in shape depending on their position in the jaw. This specimen is an example of a lateral…
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Colobodus cf. chorzowiensis ganoid scale, 10/LMK
Colobodus cf. chorzowiensis Middle Triassic, Lower Muschelkalk (anisian), Upper Silesia, Poland A beautiful, complete ganoid scale, likely belonging to Colobodus chorzowiensis (yes, Von Meyer described this species based on specimens from Chorzów in Upper Silesia!). It’s the finest specimen I’ve found. Fish equipped with this type of scales were covered in a complete, flexible “armor”.…
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Ptychoceratodus sp., dental plate, 9/LMK
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A dental plate of a Triassic lungfish (Dipnoi) – probably Ptychoceratodus sp.. A very rare specimen from the Lower Muschelkalk of Upper Silesia,.
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Sauropterygia indet., femur 8/LMK
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Sauropterygia indet. Middle Triassic, Lower Muschelkalk (Anisian), Gogolin Beds, Upper Silesia, Poland An isolated femur of Sauropterygia indet. The damaged (eroded) epiphysis reveals a spongy bone structure in this area (the shaft, in turn, is unusually dense). Those are characteristic features of Sauropterygia long bones. The specimen lacks features that would allow for a more…
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Sauropterygia indet. cf. Nothosaurus vertebra centrum 7/LMK
Sauropterygia indet. cf. Nothosaurus vertebra centrum Middle Triassic (Anisian), Lower Muschelkalk, Gogolin Beds, Upper Silesia, Poland I must admit, this is one of the best prep of a Sauropterygian vertebra centrum I’ve ever made. Finally, the center “popped” out of the matrix without damage. I glued it in place with Palaroid B72. This allows it…