Belonostomus
Belonostomus is a genus of prehistoric ray-finned fish that was described by Louis Agassiz in 1844. It is a member of the order Aspidorhynchiformes, a group of fish known for their distinctive elongated rostrums.
Fossils of Belonostomus have been found worldwide in marine deposits, although some species are known from freshwater habitats. The oldest known species are from the Upper Jurassic of Germany and England, with the youngest known species from the late Maastrichtian. One specimen has been recovered from the late Paleocene-aged Tongue River Member of North Dakota, which would suggest that this genus was the only aspidorhynchean to survive into the Cenozoic, although it is possible this fossil may have been reworked from earlier formations.
It likely consumed plankton or other small fish, though one specimen from the Late Jurassic of Germany was found with the rhynchocephalian Homoeosaurus as stomach contents.
Taxonomy
Known Belonostomus species are:- B. aciculiferus Nessov, 1985 - Turonian of Uzbekistan
- B. attentuatus Dixon, 1850 - Cenomanian of England
- B. cinctus Agassiz, 1837 - Cenomanian of England and Italy
- B. comenianus - Cenomanian of Slovenia
- B. crassirostris Costa, 1853 - Cenomanian of Morocco and Italy
- B. dalmaticus Gorjanović-Kramberger, 1895 - Cenomanian of Croatia
- B. dorsetensis Woodward, 1895 - Kimmeridgian of England
- B. helgolandicus Taverne & Ross, 1973 - Aptian of Germany
- B. hooleyi Woodward, 1916 - Barremian of England
- B. genevensis - Early Cretaceous of Switzerland
- B. kochi Agassiz, 1843 - Tithonian of Germany
- B. lamarquensis Bogan et al., 2011 - Campanian/Maastrichtian of Argentina
- B. leptosteus Agassiz ex Sir [Philip Grey Egerton, 10th Baronet|Egerton], 1836 - Bathonian of England
- B. lesinaensis Bassani, 1882 - Cenomanian of Croatia and Slovenia
- B. longirostris Lambe, 1902 - Santonian to late Maastrichtian of the Americas, including Alberta & Saskatchewan, Canada, Montana, North Dakota & Wyoming, US, Argentina, and Chile
- B. marquesbritoi Taverne & Capasso, 2012 - Campanian/Maastrichtian of Italy
- B. matteuzi Gorjanović-Kramberger, 1895 - Cenomanian of Slovenia
- B. muensteri Agassiz, 1844 - Tithonian of Germany
- B. novaki Gorjanović-Kramberger, 1895 - Cenomanian of Croatia
- B. ornatus Felix, 1891 - Berriasian of Mexico
- B. sphyraenoides Agassiz, 1844 - Tithonian of Germany
- B. tenuirostris - Tithonian of Germany and France