Coccodus


Coccodus is an extinct genus of marine pycnodontid fish that lived during the Late Cretaceous. The various species had a pair of massive, curved spines emanating from the lower sides of the head, and one curved spine on the top of its head. Unlike most pycnodontids, Coccodus species had a comparatively long body, giving the living animals a superficial resemblance to a scaly chimaera.
Coccodus is closely related to the similarly spined genera Trewavasia, Corusichthys, Paracoccodus, and Hensodon, which also lived during the Cenomanian of Lebanon.

Taxonomy

Two species are known, both from the Cenomanian-aged Sannine Formation of Lebanon:
The species Coccodus lindstroemi was recently determined to be a species complex, and various specimens assigned to C. lindstroemi were redescribed as species of the gladiopycnodontid genus ''Joinivillichthys''