Schizorhiza
Template:Short description Template:Speciesbox
Schizorhiza is an extinct genus of schizorhizid sclerorhynchoid that lived during the Late Cretaceous. It contains one valid species, Schizorhiza stromeri. It lived from the Campanian to Maastrichtian,[1] and its fossils have been found in Africa, the Middle East, North America, and South America.[2]
Taxonomy
Schizorhiza stromeri was named by Wilhelm Weiler in 1930 for rostral denticles from the Nubian Sandstone of Egypt. The species was named in honor of Ernst Stromer.[3] A second species, S. weileri, was named by Giselda Serra in 1933 for rostral denticles from Libya.[4] It is considered a junior synonym of S. stromeri.[5]
Description
Schizorhiza is characterized by its robust rostrum with over 1,800 denticles arranged in dense batteries, which form a continuous cutting edge along each side.[5] Each denticle was replaced by a series of smaller denticles nested inside its roots and new rows of denticles grew from the end of the rostrum.[6] Among sclerorhynchoids, this denticle arrangement and replacement system is only found in Schizorhiza and its close relative Harranahynchus.[7] The rostrum was likely used for swiping and slicing prey like sawfishes[5] and has earned Schizorhiza the common name of "slasher ray".[8]
References
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