| Protopirata Temporal range: Pennsylvanian, | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Holocephali |
| Order: | † Eugeneodontida |
| Family: | † Edestidae |
| Genus: | † Protopirata Trautschold, 1888 |
Protopirata is an extinct genus of shark-like eugenodont fish that existed during the Late Carboniferous period. Fossils of Protopirata have been uncovered in Iowa, United States. [1]
Edestus is an extinct genus of eugeneodontid holocephalian fish known from the Late Carboniferous (Pennsylvanian) of the United Kingdom, Russia, and the United States. Most remains consist of isolated curved blades or "whorls" that are studded with teeth, that in life were situated within the jaws. Edestus is a Greek name derived from the word edeste, in reference to the aberrant quality and size of the species' teeth. The largest species, E. heinrichi, has been conservatively estimated to reach greater than 6.7 m (22 ft) in length, around the size of the largest known great white shark, possibly making it the largest marine predator to have ever existed up to that point.
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