This is the "Fossil Friday" post #195. Expect this to be a somewhat regular feature of the website. We will post any fossil pictures you send in to [email protected]. Please include a short description or story. Check the #FossilFriday Twitter hash tag for contributions from around the world!
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For this week's Fossil Friday, we have a sweet little Acanthodes beecheri the Pit 11 locality of Mazon Creek.
Acanthodes is an extinct genus of spiny shark. Fossils have been found in Europe, North America, and Australia. Their geologic range is from the Middle Devonian until the Lower Permian. This is the second A. beecheri we've posted in the last month (see Fossil Friday #191). It was described by Charles Eastman in 1902 in "The Carboniferous Fish-Fauna of Mazon Creek, Illinois". We took a look at Acanthodes beecheri back in Mazon Monday #9.
ESCONI member Chris Berg sent us this little beauty. It was collected from Pit 11 and opened up back in July 2023 via freeze/thaw. Thanks for sharing, Chris!
