Squatinactis
| Squatinactis Temporal range:
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii Zangerl, 1981 |
| Order: | †Squatinactiformes Cappetta et al., 1993 |
| Family: | †Squatinactidae Lund and Zangerl, 1974 |
| Genus: | †Squatinactis Lund and Zangerl, 1974 |
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Squatinactis is a genus of extinct
Description
Squatinactis had a flattened body with a set of large
Classification
Because of the bizarre nature of Squatinactis, it is somewhat difficult to classify. In the original study conducted in 1974, Lund noted that the teeth of this fish are Cladodont is design,[1] however the term "cladodont" is used to describe many Paleozoic chondrichthyans based on their teeth and not phylogeny (including Cladoselache, Ctenacanthus, and Dracopristis). This fish is currently classified within the Elasmobranchii, more specially in its own grouping, the Squatinactiformes.[4]
| Phylogenetic position of S. caudispinatus as reconstructed by Hodnett & Grogan 2021. |
Ecology
This fish was probably a benthic predator; it probably lived half-buried in the sand and suddenly emerged to throw itself against the prey swimming nearby. The wing-like fins and long tail were most likely useful for propulsion from the seabed. The flattened body plan is typical of bottom-dwelling predators, and is known in a large number of cartilaginous fish, both extinct and extant.
References